How many fighters does Usyk have to beat to enter the best 10 HWs ever?

He has to beat more than AJ & Chisora that's for sure

Beating Fury alone would make him better than Holyfield in my humble opinion or reach level with him. Holyfield being the marker because he's cruiserweight like Usyk. Plenty of people put Holyfield in that lower top 10.

Even when Usyk loses to Fury and retires he's still right up there. He hasn't got a steroid buff and entered HW later than Holyfield.

Usyk is 37 in 10 months and that is a hard age to be fighting BIG heavies as a naturally smaller man, although he was always quite a large cruiser just without raw power. He still keeps the plodders like Chisora and AJ honest with his timing & stamina.

Even though he's managed to hide weaknesses and almost seem plenty durable if he keeps fighting these big guys he is going to get cracked and fold eventually. Fights once a year and injuries which nobody really pays attention to. I'm just being realistic, people are putting him on a god tier but on the right night he will look horrible just like Fury on the wrong night against the wrong opponent would be hard pressed. People need to respect that he's actually an attrition pressure fighter at heart which has had to change as a heavy. Plenty of glimpses at cruiser also when he fought men who found a rhythm against him and made him back off and get some air.

 

He is #1 or #2 at Cruiserweight. At Heavyweight he will not reach the top 10 of all time, even if he beats Fury. Wins over Fury and Joshua don’t put you in the top 10 of all time. However, his ranking in pound for pound history would sky rocket.

 

I don't have George Foreman in my top ten heavyweight so, for me, Usyk has quite a way to go. I'm not sure that, without beating Fury, there are active opponents that would move Usyk into the top ten if he were to beat them. I would say four or five more defenses would help considerably.

 

I don't think he will box that long. Needs at least 3- 4 more wins vs stiff competition. Fury, Wilder, Zhang, Dubois would help.

 

Fury is the best heavyweight of all times so beating him propels Usyk. Although beat Fury, Usyk would not.

 

Uysk goes up in ATG rankings rather than heavyweight rankings, But a Fury victory and a few top other fighters, maybe the new breed.

 

More than three. Especially if two of them are Chazz Witherspoon and Derek Chisora.

Baby steps.

Manny Pacquiao doesn't get a lot of votes for best lightweight ever.

 

If he convincingly beats Fury and Wilder, then he'll have essentially cleaned out two divisions. That definitely puts him in the top 20 at least. Top 10 would be tough because I don't think there's enough solid competition among today's HWs for anyone to legitimately put together a resume that puts them in the top 10. Perhaps there could be an exception if someone came along and truly steamrolled through everyone. (For example, if Wilder could actually do to Fury, AJ, Usyk, Ruiz, and maybe Zhang what he's done to all his tomato cans, then that would be incredible.)

Also, Usyk has only had 20 fights. Say he beats Fury and Wilder and retires. 22-0. That's a pretty low total for a top 10 HW. Think of all other potential top 10 heavyweights. Nearly all of them have had roughly 50 or more fights, except for joe frazier with 37. Sure you could argue quality over quantity, but how far could you stretch that argument when comparing Usyk to someone like Joe Louis, who was 66-3. He fought literally 3 times as many fights.

 

He's beaten Joshua at heavyweight, that's the only top ten heavyweight he fought and beat (twice). Times not on his side, I don't know if he could do it just because of his situation. Plus if he gets old overnight and someone KOs him people are going to really hold it against him. If he had turned pro younger and went to Heavy immediately maybe he could of done it.

 

He would have to beat Fury more than once...face Wilder and beat him...also beat a Zhang or Joyce or two....then some previously unheard of monsters would have to show up and he'd had to beat some of those as well....so basically at this point in time there is nothing he could ever do do be in the top 10.

 

I agree it would be very tough given his advanced age. If he were to beat Fury, Wilder and Zheng in good fashion that could possibly land him in the top 15.

 

No matter who he beats, he will always have the asterix by his name that most of his good work was done at cruiser, and that is all right. He will be a pound per pound uber-elite who did a great job at heavy--you can give lesser talents your official heavyweight top ten ranking, he will be in an uber-elite pfp category that ONLY Ali and Louis among heavies reach.

He is probably only got two fights left, which, if we are lucky, will be Wilder and Fury. More likely likley it will be Dubois and Hrgovic, so it is what it is.

 

I agree with most of what you say, just want to note that by divisional resume he's definitely #1 all time at CW. Behind Evander at HW by a lot, of course, though.

 

Best ever ? nothing he can do right now.

Best of this century ? for sure. All he needs to do is become undisputed and beat two top 10 guys