Is Usyk an ATG at Heavyweight?

Yes he is, but I'm not sure is top 10 due to level of competition and longevity in the division

Head to head I would definitely think he is top 10
If you combine his achievements at cw then he is high up p4p, but I'm not sure if he is a top 10 heavy regarding accomplishments

But definitely an ATG heavy
If Parker beats Dubois and he adds his scalp and maybe another? Then with the extra defences he is certainly top 10 and maybe top 5?

 

I think he is a Top 15 - 20 ATG as it stands.

As the sport continues there are more and more fighters ATG. It’s not like there is a limited number allowed.

One thing nobody brings up is that Usyk seems unable to stop his elite opposition. That’s at CW and HW. There was Dubois but he basically quit. And then there is Huck and Bellew but they were past their prime. And that’s it. A KO is the ultimate statement. I am not buying the argument that Usyk is too skilled to KO his opponents.

 

Mayweather imo is one of the best to ever do it, his stats back that up and he didn't always stop his elite competition

But yeah it's a valid point though, because Ali who was not a major puncher did stop his 3 biggest rivals

Although I highly rate usyk he can never be on his level

 

If he isn't then who is?

 

Ali didn’t stop Norton. And Frazier’s corner stopped Frazier (although admittedly a more modern ref would have stopped it).

unless I’m the weird one who considers Liston less of a rival than Norton?

 

He's definitely an atg fighter, that's for sure, imo.


He could have mixed it up in any era I think, with any of the past eras top elites, at Cruiser or Heavy.

He's smashed his own eras best out of the ball park. Not just with one fight, but two in some cases. So rubber stamped!

To the point that some have publicly retired.

 

Top 20 almost certainly.

Top 10, probably not his resume is very short at heavyweight. On the other hand if you value quality over quantity, maybe he is. Myself, I like a fighter to hang around a bit.

 

top 15, arguably top 10.

Best of his era. A bonafide ATG.

As much as i love Usyk, i do think fighters his size who can match his speed and work rate would give him more trouble than the giants who can't keep up with his work rate.

This is why Breidis gave him a hard fight. I think smaller heavies like Frazier and heavies his own size like Liston, Ali or Holmes would be more competitive with him than AJ or Fury.

So yes, he is great. I picked him to beat both Joshua and Fury so i am by no means someone who dislikes him. He is infact my favourite fighter today.

I do , however think, that smaller heavies match up better vs him than larger ones do. So the idea that he would demolish all of the smaller heavies of the past just because he can dominate giants makes no sense to me. No one is unbeatable. Not even Usyk even if he were to retire undefeated.

 

Usyk pitty pattered his way to multiple victories over Joshua and Fury, I thought Dubois landed a peach body shot which should have KO’d him.

On the one hand one definitely has to give credit to these wins, on the other hand one has to question how he’d go with a longer tenure at heavyweight against a few more top tens.

If Chisora pushed him to the limit, who else could?

He’s in the top 15 Heavyweights of all time imo.

 

Liston was a bigger win than norton at the time, that's what I meant

Sure, norton was his toughest matchup, but what i meant to say was Ali stopped 3 guys who are among ATG heavies. Usyk unfortunately hasn't beat an ATG never mind stop one

This is why I think Ali is special. Sure he lost fights, but it was definitely a much more competitve era and he did win rematches, if we count norton as wins

No dig at Usyk who is amazing, but he isn't Ali, no heavyweight is

 

Good post and I think Mike Tyson would be a huge favourite over usyk

He's amazing, but so have others before him and a zero isn't everything

Does a anyone in the right mind rank Floyd higher than Leonard, Duran or Robinson?

 

Ali also stopped Bonavena who had never been stopped before. That would be the equivalent of Usyk stopping Hunter, for example. First and only man to stop Foreman. And of course Liston too.

 

This is why Ali is the greatest
Sure he had some lacklustre performances, but he won fights definitively when it mattered and could handle pressure like no other

I call Duran the Goat of the last 50 years, as he is my favourite fighter to watch, but honestly still think it is Ali who is number 1

Some think he is overrated because of his fame outside of the ring, or believe it's cool to underrate him a little now, but he's the GOAT heavyweight for sure

 

To me a stoppage is fine, if usyk makes them quit I can accept that as a stoppage. However I do agree, he doesn’t do that often either.

it is something about “closing the show” that he lacks.

he doesn Have to stop every opponent, but needs a few in there.