Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury have shown respect for each other following their undisputed battle back in May.
Although Fury was full of his usual wind-up antics and mocking nicknames such as ‘little sausage’ and ‘gap-toothed rabbit’ in the build-up to the fight, he was rather humbled during it. The ninth round in particular which sent him reeling around the ring and led to a count from the referee was one of the most torrid of his career.
After the conclusion of the fight, Usyk was named the split decision points winner and thus the first undisputed ruler in the heavyweight division since Lennox Lewis in 1999.
He added that title to his Olympic Gold medal from London 2012 and the undisputed cruiserweight championship from 2016. Now, he rematches Fury on December 21 to once again stake his claim as the best heavyweight of a generation.
Ahead of the rematch, he has spoken to TNT Sports Boxing and summed up ‘The Gypsy King’s renowned fighting skills in three words.
“Very smart fighter.”
The Ukrainian also says Fury – who he has unsurprisingly named as his toughest ever opponent – “recovers very fast.”
The Brit says he lost focus during the first contest and “was having too much fun”, but has promised to be better the second time around as he looks to avenge the only loss on his professional ledger.
He has also said he will keep the same corner team of his father John Fury and trainers Andy Lee and SugarHill Stewart for the second fight despite the fact they came under fire during the first contest for offering what seemed like mixed messages in the later rounds.
