Mike Tyson believes Oleksandr Usyk will have to stand his ground and trade with Tyson Fury if he is to emerge victorious in their proposed heavyweight showdown.
Usyk and Fury hold all four major heavyweight belts between them, and are currently in negotiations for an undisputed clash that could take place in late April at Wembley Stadium.
The Ukrainian has developed a reputation for being a master boxer, and his speed and movement helped him get past Anthony Joshua twice, but Tyson doesn’t think those tactics will work against Fury.
‘He [Usyk] can’t run forever. Tyson’s going to get him in the corner, he’s going to get him with some punches, and he’s going to hurt him eventually,’ the former heavyweight champion told iD Boxing.
‘He’s going to run all night. He has to stay and fight to win the fight. At some particular time, he’s going to have to stand and fight.’
Usyk has won five of his last seven fights by decision, but Tyson has significant doubts about whether he will be able to do enough to impress the judges against Fury.
Fury was involved in back-to-back slugfests with Deontay Wilder in 2020 and 2021, where the Brit walked his opponent down before stopping him on both occasions.
Tyson feels that style of fighting will catch the eye of the judges more, and will mean that Usyk has to move away from his usual approach to win.
‘He can’t run and box all night – they’re not gonna give him the decision, now with Tyson,’ Iron Mike continued.
‘They want to see some fighting. After watching him and Deontay Wilder in a fight, they ain’t going to go for no running and hitting.’
Looking ahead to the potential match-up, Tyson is confident that Fury will come out on top, and has urged the Gypsy King to follow in his footsteps and fight more regularly moving forward.
‘Tyson Fury is going to win, and I think Tyson should fight more. They take too much time in between fights,’ he said.
‘I fought 15 times in one year. I’m a strong believer of four or five times a year; they should fight.’
