In years to come, when boxing fans and experts look back on today and the heavyweight division, who will these people think was the best of these times of this generation? Right now, plenty of experts feel Oleksandr Usyk, 22-0(14), will be remembered as THE man: unbeaten, unified the belts in just three fights, fought in many an opponent’s backyard, achieved so much at cruiserweight before moving up. Yes, Usyk’s resume is rock-solid; his legacy seems secure.
But Frank Warren, promoter of Tyson Fury, says Fury will get his revenge over Usyk when they fight again in December and that he will then go down as the best of his generation when it comes to the heavyweights. Fury, with a win over Usyk to go alongside his big wins over Wladimir Klitschko and Deontay Wilder, would be THE man, Warren argues.
“All the doubters, all the journalists were saying Usyk is now up there with all the legends of the sport, the Muhammad Alis, the Fraziers, the Foremans, the Joe Louis, as being one of the greatest and certainly the greatest of his generation,” Warren said when speaking on Sky Sports. “And I’m pleased they’ve said that because when Tyson beats him, no one can debate the fact that he’s beat the best of his generation, which will make HIM the best of his generation.”
That is interesting, and fans are sure to take a look at this. If Fury, 34-1-1(24) does get his revenge over Usyk next month, say by split decision the way Usyk beat him, would this be enough for Fury to be secure in knowing he will be recognised as the best of his generation? Or would there have to be a rubber match, a deciding fight between the two with the honor going the winner’s way? And, say what you want, but if Fury does beat Usyk, maybe even twice, but does not face Anthony Joshua before retiring from the sport, there will be those that say, yes, Fury may have been the best of his generation, but maybe there should be an asterisk above his name, this due to him not having defeated his British rival.
Maybe. It’s all down to opinion, and of course, on who wins on December 21. If Fury is beaten a second time, perhaps more convincingly this time, he would have zero claim to being the best of his generation. While as for Usyk, if he repeats his big win from May, has he done enough, would that be sufficient for Usyk to go down as the best heavyweight of his time?
It would be tough to find any fault with Usyk’s resume, to point at anyone he ducked or dodged, that’s for sure.
Three weeks today, we will all be tuning in to see just what happens when Usyk and Fury collide again.
