Oleksandr Usyk wants Tyson Fury fight in 2023

By Boxing News - 09/02/2022 - Comments

By Charles Brun: Oleksandr Usyk says his undisputed heavyweight fight with Tyson Fury will need to wait until next year because he wants to spend time with his family and let his injuries heal following his second win over Anthony Joshua.

Usyk (20-0, 13 KOs) has been through the wringer, fighting in the war in Ukraine and then jumping straight into training camp to defeat former unified champion Joshua for the second time.

For the time being, Fury is going to need to put a sock in it and wait until Usyk is fully rested before the two battle in 2023. If you’re Fury, you should probably defend his WBC title because he’s not the type of person that reacts well to being out of the ring for a long stretch.

We know how Fury likes to eat, and there’s the potential for him to indulge himself for the remainder of this year, knowing that the Usyk fight won’t happen until 2023.

My  suggestion is for Fury to fight one of these talented heavyweights while he waits for Usyk:

  • Joe Joyce
  • Joseph Parker
  • Frank Sanchez
  • Andy Ruiz Jr
  • Luis Ortiz
  • Filip Hrgovic

“I want the WBC title. It was captured by the gypsies, some kind of king. We don’t know what Tyson has in his head. Everyone knows that this is a very crazy guy. I would really like this fight to happen next year,” Oleksandr Usyk said to talkSPORT.

So there it is. Usyk wants the fight with Fury to take place in 2023, and that’s how it’s going to be. Fury can bellyache all he wants, but there’s nothing he can do about it because Usyk has spoken.

Again, Fury needs to stay busy because he hasn’t had a real fight since his long count match against Deontaty Wilder last October. You can’t count that cakewalk title defense against the old-timer Dillian Whyte last April as a real fight because it was a pure joke.

“Fighting Tyson Fury in December is impossible,” continued Usyk. “First, I have old injuries. Second, I just don’t want to box in December. I haven’t left the gym for half a year; I want to be with my children, my family. Boxing can wait a little. Next year I think it will happen,” said Usyk.

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