By Jeff Aronow: IBF/WBA/WBO heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk will be tuning in this Saturday to watch the trilogy fight between WBC champion Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder.
Ultimately, Usyk (19-0, 13 KOs) could face the Fury-Wilder winner if he successfully defeats Anthony Joshua in their rematch early next year.
Unlike many fans, oddsmakers, and the media, Usyk believes Wilder (42-1-1, 41 KOs) has a real shot at beating Usyk due to his punching power.
If Wilder lands one of his big shots, he could knock out Fury and ruin his dreams of facing Joshua or Usyk in 2022. It’s interesting how few people are giving Wilder any chance of winning this fight.
“I will definitely watch,” said Usyk to DAZN on the Fury vs. Wilder trilogy match.
It’s essential that Usyk monitor what’s going on with the Fury-Wilder 3 fight because he’s very likely to fight the winner next year.
The two-division world champion Usyk says he doesn’t care who wins the fight because he’s okay with facing either of them. The 6’9″ Fury would be a difficult task for Usyk, but his speed and defensive ability would make it challenging for Tyson to land his slower shots.
Fury’s 270+ lb bulk would work against him against an agile, speedy heavyweight like Usyk.
“I don’t think too much about who wins. It will be a good fight. Don’t write Deontay Wilder off since he always has the knock-out punch. I will watch it for sure, and I am curious who wins.
“I will fight with whoever holds the last belt. I don’t care if it is Wilder or Fury. No, I am not good at making predictions. The only prediction I give you is that I’ll have a fantastic dinner tonight.”
Fury has already gone on record to say that he prefers to fight Anthony Joshua rather than Usyk.
It’s not that Fury views him as a more formidable opponent, but rather there’s more money in it for him in taking on Joshua.
A fight between him and AJ would be massive worldwide, especially in the UK.
Assuming Wilder does pull off an upset, there will be many shocked people in disbelief. However, if fans remember the first fight, Wilder actually knocked Fury out cold in the 12th round, the referee chose not to stop the contest.
Incredibly, he gave Fury a massive break by giving him a count while he was unconscious.
Many boxing fans don’t view it as odd that Fury was given a count under those circumstances, but you rarely see that kind of thing.
Referees stop fights right away when a fighter has been knocked out the way Fury was by Wilder.