Oleksandr Usyk’s promoter, Alex Krassyuk, says he would like to see him ready for the undisputed championship next after his 12-round unanimous decision win over Tyson Fury in their rematch last Saturday night.
They will have to wait for the winner of the February 22nd bout between IBF heavyweight champion Daniel Dubois and Joseph Parker before negotiations can begin for an undisputed championship bout with Usyk (23-0, 12 KOs).
Usyk says he’s open to any fight, and it will be up to Turki Alalshikh whether he wants to fight the Dubois-Parker winner. Oleksandr doesn’t have anyone else to fight, and it will be a big one for him at heavyweight. He’s talked about wanting to move down to cruiserweight, but he’s not going to do that if he can get a bigger money fight against Dubois or Parker.
Usyk’s dominance
“It was a beautiful performance. I’m actually out of (words) for this reason. I don’t have much to say. He was an encyclopedia of boxing,” said promoter Alex Krassyuk iFL TVtalking about his fighter Oleksandr Usyk after his victory over Tyson Fury last Saturday night in Riyadh.
“He showed how boxing is performed in 12 rounds. So, he made it out of the basement. He was setting the bricks. To put windows and the roof, and he will have created the building,” Krassyuk said of Usyk’s achievement.
“We have been fighting in the backyards of our opponents since 2016. This is nothing new for us. It’s a comfortable atmosphere. We got used to it.
“Probably relax, recover his mind and get back to training,” Krassyuk said when asked what Fury should do next. “He is a great champion. It’s not about what I’d like to see. It’s about what the world of boxing would like to see. If they’re happy to see this fight, that’s perfect.”
Fury is NOT going to retire because he wants to fight Anthony Joshua, and you can understand that. There is a lot of money in him facing AJ, and it will help him redeem himself after losing back-to-back fights to Usyk.
“For me, I would like to see Usyk undisputed #3,” Krassyuk said, making it clear that he wants to see Usyk face the winner of the February 22nd contest between IBF heavyweight champion Daniel Dubois and Joseph Parker.
Turki Alashikh also wants the undisputed fight between Usyk and the Dubois vs. Parker winner, so there’s no problem making that fight happen as long as something unforeseen happens. Anthony Joshua will not be a problem as he has shown no desire to fight a rematch with Dubois and knows better than to face Usyk a third time.
Fury’s Beard Controversy
“It’s not an issue that affects the outcome of the fight,” Krassyuk said when asked if Fury’s beard was a problem for them in this fight. “It’s just a formal thing whether we comply with the rules or not. The rules say that the beard must be trimmed so that the volume does not affect the punch.
“Every organization has it, but it doesn’t make clear the specific length of the beard, and for this reason you can’t know the limit where it comes from legal to illegal,” Krassyuk said.
It is impossible to know if Fury’s beard has dampened the impact of Usyk’s punches enough so that he does not get hurt. On a couple of occasions, Fury’s head jerked back, his eyes rolling over whites as Usyk hit hard. Whether those shots would do more damage if Fury was clean-shaven is unknown. You’d still want to see Fury shave.
What will be interesting to see is if Fury chooses to shave no that he doesn’t fight. If he does, you have to believe that he grew his beard to use it as reinforcement to protect him from the punches.
