Why Oleksandr Usyk Should Be P4P Number 1 Over Both Terence Crawford & Naoya Inoue.

Some things are just too obvious to argue over.

 

I agree on Usyk having the best resume and overall career of the three. If all three were to retire today, Usyk would rank the highest in an all time sense. But he has also been inactive for a whole year, whereas Inoue and Crawford both fought this year and in december of last year, giving us a better and clearer impression of their current state. And now he's going to fight a very mundane fighter in Dubois, add him being 36 and I have a hard time believing he is clearly the best fighter in the world at this very moment.

He very well could be, if he fights and beats Fury then the argument is all over. But the P4P rankings should obviously be based not only on overall accomplishments, but on the current condition and ability of the fighter, otherwise Pacquiao would have been the P4P number 1 from 2016-2021, and I just don't think Usyk is clearly ahead of either Inoue or Crawford at this moment. If he beats Dubois the same way he beat Gassiev so many years ago, then the argument is still there ( May God have mercy on our souls and let the Fury fight happen), but if he struggles, then it's basically over.

 

Those are my top 3....not necessarily in the same order though. Based on current form and activity as of todays date is the reason why i dont have Uysk as my number 1. I cant have him top based on what he achieved 2019 and prior

 

Yeah, Oleksandr “Only Fights Once a Year” Usyk’s outstanding resume in the past 5 years of shot Tony Bellew on the verge of retirement, bum Chazz Witherspoon, a controversial narrow win over shot Derek Chisora, and limited Anthony Joshua who people only magically started hyping up after he got beat by Usyk, is definitely P4P #1 material over Naoya Inoue and Terence Crawford who have been KOing an endless gauntlet of active world champions in non-controversial extremely dominant fashion

 

Sorry lad but Usyk is not number one and you have greatly overemphasised his achievements.

While I agree that Joshua comes in for undue criticism, he is not a Grade A boxer. I’m really not sure how you have managed to shoehorn him into such a category, in all honesty.

Usyk won both fights by pot shotting for the entire 24 rounds of their two bouts. I don’t think he planted his feet to punch and never once troubled AJ.

He also struggled against Chisora; a one dimensional plodder who had lost 4 of his previous 10 going into the fight.

His stoppage of Bellew is not that impressive either. Bellew was cashing out in his final fight. He turned up with a roll of flab over his belt and was visibly gassed by the end of the fourth round.

He won the WBSS by scrapping a SD in the semi final against Briedis - a fight which many thought Usyk lost.

That Usyk won the cruiserweight WBSS only points to how deficient and unnecessary that weight class is. It should be held in the same level of contempt that bridgerweight is.

 

Crawford is P4P number 1. Usyk will need to beat Fury to take the spot

 

You need to consider overall body of work plus recent achievements. Crawford is currently the Concensus pick as P4P number 1 which is ultimately a subjective pick. My top 5 currently are as follows:

1. Crawford
2. Inoue
3. Usyk
4. Tank
5. Shakur

Was tempted to put Jermell in the top 5 as a current undisputed champion, obviously Canelo and Haney worthy of consideration as are the 2 Light Heavyweight world champions.

 

Great analysis. I have no problem with a Usyk being ranked one or two but he needs to fight more frequently. Crawford destroyed Spence and I believe he earned the top spot. I know people are slagging Spence these days but most of those people (I know not you) picked Spence to beat Crawford. That was as close to being a 50-50 super fight as it gets and Crawford dominated every aspect of the fight.

If Fury grows a set of testicles and agrees to fight Usyk and Usyk wins (even if the judges rob him) he deserves top spot without a doubt. He’s giving up more size than anyone in boxing and winning on sheer boxing skill. Loma got royally hosed against the much bigger, younger Haney and it bothers me to see Haney in many PFP lists that don’t include Loma. Most fans and boxing writers have short memories and seem to forget what actually happened that night and how bad that decision was. That’s BULL****. So are the lists that include Canelo in the top three or four but no mention of Bivol or Bivol listed 10th. Bivol gave Canelo a thorough beating and boxing lesson. PFP fighters don’t lose that convincingly to guys who are pretty much the same size (Bivol can still make 168 but Canelo wants no part of him at that weight be sore he knows Bivol will take away his belts).

I follow Inoue but rarely watch other little guys. I am the wrong person to rank smaller guys even though I respect their skills. Seeing Usyk give up thirty or forty pounds to AJ on fight night and then seeing smaller guys move up two weight classes by gaining five or six pounds seems unfair. Plus it’s more fun for me to see larger guys fight. If that makes me ignorant or a casual, it’s okay. I’ve been called worse.

I just hope we see some of these fights soon. Usyk, Crawford and Loma are on the wrong side of 35. Especially Usyk who gives up so much size and who depends on speed and endurance to win. Those are typically not qualities fighters take into their 40’s. Sorry for the rant.

 

Usyk is without doubt a class talent but I’ve said it before and il say it again,at the moment too much is being made of him up at Heavyweight. Currently four fights at Heavyweight with two of those over journeymen feeling his way into the new Division and two wins over Joshua to take the belts,the same Joshua who quit on his feet against Ruiz. If Usyk beats Fury then without a doubt he is P4P no1 however as for now he’s sitting third for me behind Inoue and Crawford in top spot .

 

After Fury slaps Usyk he is P4P #1

Wlad, Widler & Usyk in dominating fashion beats anyone else's resume.