By Charles Brun: Oleksandr Usyk’s promoter Alex Krassyuk says they’ve agreed on a deadline of March 4th for the heavyweight undisputed championship fight with Tyson Fury, possibly in the Middle East.
Krassyuk says the worst-case scenario would see the Fury vs. Usyk fight take place at Wembley Stadium in London. The Middle East is where the fight will likely wind up.
Krassyuk didn’t mention the plans if WBC champion Fury (33-0-1, 24 KOs) starts giving deadlines to Usyk for him to sign the contract. That would be another example of Fury’s ham-handed approach to negotiations. Fury’s promoter Bob Arum needs to put a muzzle on him to keep him quiet during the talks.
Fury wrecked his negotiations with Anthony Joshua, which ultimately led him to lose out on a King’s fortune, being left with Derek Chisora to fight.
“Even if Tyson were speaking Ukrainian, it wouldn’t change a lot. Usyk is tough. He’s gone through many challenges in his life,” said promoter Alex Krassyuk to Secondsout, discussing the interaction between Oleksandr & Tyson Fury after the Gyspy King’s recent win over Derek Chisora on December 3rd at Tottenham Hotspurs Stadium in London.
“We’re in negotiations with three countries in the Middle East, and we still have the option of Great Britain. The worst [case] scenario, it goes to Wembley.
“In any other scenario, it takes place in the Middle East. The deadline we agreed on together is the fourth of March,” said Usyk.
Fury will need to adapt his game if he’s to have any chance of beating Usyk because the way he’s been fighting in his last two fights is too simplistic to beat a talent like Oleksandr.
In other words, it will not work if Fury chooses to throw single shots and immediately dive in for a clinch. That one-dimensional approach for Fury will be foiled every time by Usyk, who will sidestep his bear-like moves and counter him every time.
The leaning that Fury tends to use nonstop in his fights is going to need to be thrown in the trash bin during camp because it’s not going to work against Usyk. Fury should work on his stamina in camp because he can’t rely on clinching & leaning for him to try and defeat Usyk.
