I have never been so wrong about a fighter as I have been about Tyson Fury. I've followed Tyson since the amateurs. He was very vocal even back then. I just never really rated him. When he turned pro, I couldn't see him go past British level. Here's a guy who just seems too clumsy. He hits himself with the uppercut, his right hand is too low, he just looks awkward. The guy has shown he is unbelievable, it seems like the better the opponent, the more Tyson shows. I never thought he could beat Wladimir, but not only did Tyson beat him, he actually outboxes the boxer. I didn't think Tyson could beat Wilder, I just thought it's too quick, especially with the weight loss. Well once again, Tyson dominates. I hold my hand up and say that Tyson is the best heavyweight in the world. Tyson fights boxers that Joshua doesn't fight. It was Tyson that beat Wladimir first, not Joshua. Joshua had the leftover. Tyson then goes to America and " beats" Wilder. Tyson is doing all the dirty work. Well done Tyson. What fighter achieved much more than you expected?
Even if we ignore the three year hiatus, he outboxed two guys with ATG power in their own back yards over 24 rounds. It's not like he's a massive puncher and got to them first. He won over the full distance vs guys who carry their power late...to do that over the full twelve rounds on the road is impressive, no matter how you cut it. I'm just glad Germany gave him the nod, even if the US didn't. Considering the reputation Germany has for bad decisions, that's saying something.
Fury really impressed me with his technique and movement that fight, the only thing that bothers me is he seems to lack power and doesn't seize the opportunities he creates to finish dangerous opponents like Wilder. It's as if it bottlenecks him and doesn't allow him to reach that next level, where he would be truly dominant and not just keeping danger away as much as possible... atleast that's how the 2 knockdowns illustrated to me (with the last knockdown being incredibly vicious). I feel like to really reach that next level, Fury would need to use his superior boxing to be able to take threats like Wilder out, instead of surviving and getting rounds for 12 rounds. Look at Lennox Lewis, he's a great boxer but also a great puncher.
He is very intelligent and he has that rare style which is so awkward and he is so fast it is hard for guys to beat him. Only the best will beat him. Last night I think he lapsed in concentration a little and that is when he was caught. If he can clean up that concentration he could beat all of them. A draw does not hurt his legacy at all. It does not hurt either guy, but a rematch will clear it up. I just don't know if they will fight a rematch. Both guys want Joshua knowing he is the man now no matter what they say, Joshua is the man to beat. So they will use this to get a fight with Joshua. Joshua should not deal with Fury. He might lose.
Lots of people were wrong about Tyson because he came into the game so young and so raw with a few bumps along the road. It's great to see people hold their hand up and say "I got it wrong, he's a great fighter." We all call it wrong sometimes. No big deal. It's a pity there's still many idiots out there who persist on putting him down while disregarding his skills and achievements, because they can't admit they got it wrong. Internet egos. How sad.
Gypsy Slickness is the gold standard of slickness and Brit Level is the gold standard for world boxing. So a Brit Level Slick Gypsy is pretty much unbeatable even at 60% or 70%. Don't forget that Tyson has never been close to being in optimum shape even during his prime and the one we saw in there last night schooling America's best HW in decades hadn't fought anyone with a pulse in 3 years, was totally inactive for 2.5 years, abused the hell out of his body with industrial amounts of alcohol, drugs and junk food all throughout his inactivity, ballooned up to over 400lbs and had to shed 140lbs of it back off, and was battling depression/mental illness, suicidal thoughts, and came close to topping himself. I'm very pleased our cousins across the pond finally got to see what true slickness looks like in the flesh on their shores for the first time ever though. I know The Gypsy King has already fought on US soil before but for whatever reason he totally abandoned his Gypsy Slickness in that fight and sadly they had to wait until last night to get a demonstration of it. And obviously they would've gotten one earlier in the year from BJS 2.0 had the powers that be not framed an innocent gypsy for a crime he did not do to prevent America's most talented fighter Boo Boo from getting totally outclassed by him.
He shocked me too, he was a joke early on in his career, too overweight, known for uppercutting himself, I really didn't rate him at all until he beat Chisora the 2nd time and even then he shocked me when he beat Wlad. Going into the Wlad fight I thought he'd surprise people and give Wlad problems early on but never expected the performance he gave. I thought he'd lose focus and some point and Wlad would get him, but Fury proved he could remain focused for 12 rounds at the elite level. Then he gained all the weight, I wrote him off again never thought he'd come back, but he did. Never thought he'd actually fight Wilder so soon, but again he did, didn't think he'd regained so much form so quickly but again he did. I've learned my lesson now, I'll never write him off again, not even against Joshua.
When he turned from chubby brawler to Leaner boxer mover he utterly thrashed delboy in the 2ndnfight then hammer, two tough fighters who quit and got busted up and couldn't land a single blow all night. It was a 4 fight window where he showed his real skills and ring smarts and I knew he'd beat Klitschko, he's just a different breed! Natural born fighter!! He also has alot more in his locker than wilder, he has alot more boxing experience and knowledge than wilder doesn't box enough with the advantages he has. Fast and Rangy. But bad footwork and crazy technique.
