Fury fought the wrong fight.

You are hopeless.

 

If you say so.

 

He did. Letting Usyk push you back all night is probably the worst possible tactic, he let Usyk dictate the pace and moving that much made him gas out. Fury actually had decent succes doing it though, bringing Usyk onto counters, but it wasn't enough.

Think he wins the rematch, he'll realize he can't win by exclusively fighting on the backfoot and he should back Usyk up, which is where Usyk is at his worst. Can't be reckless though as Usyk showed he can hurt him badly. Fury can also hurt Usyk with single shots to the head though and that's something I didn't expect to see.

 

Where was Fury's right hand? Throwing a 2 is what would have deterred Usyk from coming in, provided it had good power, or enough technique that it has a sting. People are talking about Fury's stamina and what the coke binge and weight fluctuations may done. I haven't seen anyone say much about him not having the power to keep Usyk back.

 

Teddy Atlas got this one right saying you can measure things like footwork, power, a jab etc but Usyk has something that can't be measured and that's finding a way to win. Teddy alo added Usyks reasons and his will to win. Add those two things together and you know the age old saying... Where there's a will there's a way!

 

I mean, didn't people saying the absolutely same thing about Joshua?
Wasn't Fury that good, that he could adapt mid round and change his style and goes on mauling Usyk? You can't go and maul someone as good as Usyk, given how many time Usyk prove people wrong i though you would have learned this.

You can do that on a static target, not a guy that moves like Usyk, even to an old Usyk. Young Usyk would have toy with Fury, and even more of a toy with the mauling tactics.

 

Frank Warren:
Speaking to [url]Seconds Out[/url], Warren said: ‘We are committed because there’s a contract signed. However, Tyson’s got to want to do it and Usyk has got to want to do it.

‘If one of them says “I’ve had enough” that could be the case. And that would be their choice.

Will you stop crying now?

 

Is the only person who can beat Usyk someone exactly like Usyk?

A carbon copy, as it were.

Someone, of similar size, with the same speed, footwork etc...

It's clearly not working sending big guys in to try and walk him down, so unless you can match him for output, cardio, and nullify his weapons by being like a mirror image, can you do anything?

Of course, the danger there is exactly that...that they cancel each other out and you get a kind of stalemate where nothing much happens.

Is there even anyone in the HW division like that?

 

Fury had the right gameplan. Andy Lee is great tactician and they pick the best possible plan. Also they get Fury in the best shape he has ever been, and this is not my conclusion, but his team conclusion. And he did was in insane shape.

To be fair i was a little bit worried when i see the weight in, cause i understood that Fury will fight on the back foot. I though this was Fury best chances, as going forward would have lead to getting counter all night, before getting KOed.

 

dont need someone like that, aj leaves fury twitching on the ground like a flounder.

 

I don't think Fury has the ability to walk down Usyk and maul him.

I thought Fury was at his best when he sat down on his jabs and landed the long body shots. That's when Usyk looked most lost.

The problem was Usyk set too high a pace, walked through the storm and forced the fight on Fury.

Up close the guy with shorter arms has the advantage and that is why Fury had to try to keep it at range.

 

To echo/paraphrase what some (I can't remember if you were one of them?) said about Wlad when he fought Fury...

"Usyk was just too good to let him fight to his strengths".

I think this is weak on some levels, but in simplistic terms it's not far off.

Usyk's counters the few times Fury tried the clinch were absolutely beautiful, blink and you'll miss them, but he nullified that particular favourite tactic/foul.
But if we're giving full credit, I think Fury expected that - he didn't look like he'd turned up expecting to be able to rely on it, he looked like he'd been expecting Usyk to have answers.

So it's not just that Fury had a favourite strength taken away - it's that he did, but he'd been expecting it and practicing other things.


Then, as you note, he had to be wary of eating counters from Usyk because his chin is overrated (and his magnificent recovery is useless if he's knocked out or taken a sufficient barrage to get stopped)... So the idea of just marching forward eating whatevers necessary to get your own shots off (the basic Joe Joyce strategy) was clearly off the table too.


Which left pure boxing primarily for points and trying to work big enough openings to throw bigger - or get frustrated enough to throw caution to the wind in brief spurts.

Problem is... When you're fighting a master technician with a higher ring IQ, things can go downhill fast that way too.


Fury fought well - but Usyk is just something else, levels upon levels beyond anyone Fury's fought since Wlad, and possibly even beyond a prime Wlad (which the version Fury fought most definitely was not).

 

Happy New Year everyone