That`s what a lot of people are waiting for, one things for sure after last night he would destroy Haye, his punched matched up well to how Haye`s punches effected Bellew, also Holy did great at heavy and Usyk is taller at 6'3, he also toyed with Joyce in an important amateur bout.
Obviously we need to see how he copes at heavyweight and deals with being dwarfed by some the the bigger heavies. The Bellew fight was a nice introduction for Usyk to the UK fans. A winnable fight in front of a near capacity crowd on a big UK PPV event was the perfect platform to launch his career in the UK. But now we need to see him in with a genuine heavyweight in the pro ranks. People will talk about the Joyce fight but Joyce is a far better fighter now than then, that was some 5 years ago I think. Joyce going into the Olympics nobody gave him much of a chance, but he's shown he's improved and matured as a fighter.
I agree, he very well may be a great fighter at HW, I’m just surprised, at least somewhat at number of threads claiming him to be better than the top HW’s and I don’t think he’s fought there in the pros yet…you never know how a guy is going to take the jump.
He fought Joyce the same year as the Olympics. Unlike amateur boxing, competitors taking part in sanctioned World Series of Boxing bouts must be bare-chested and are not permitted to wear protective headgear. Each participating boxer is drafted by one of a number of international franchises and can earn money by taking part in professional-style bouts. However, they maintain Olympic and AIBA world championship eligibility and remain eligible to compete at the Olympic Games. Like professional boxing, each bout is decided by the scores of three judges or, in some cases, by a knockout, technical knockout or walk-over. A WSB meet between two international franchises consists of bouts in ten (formerly five) weight categories. There are five three-minute rounds in each bout and the team that wins the most number of bouts wins the meet.[1]
Uysk fought Joyce in March 2013, so Brighton Bomber was correct. You can watch the fight on Youtube, its a much more contested bout than many like to falsely claim, where Joyce lands on Uysk more than people like to admit.
Usyk was also gassed at the end of that fight. It was a good win but it took everything usyk had to keep joyce off him for 5 rounds.
Having seen how the other very best CWs in boxing history have managed to do at HW (Holyfield and Haye). We already know that Usyk is going to be a real threat at HW and will be atleast elite top 10. Usyk easily has a big enough frame to be competitive at HW. The concern for me is whether he is able to make the defensive shifts to avoid getting hit as much as he has done in some of his previous fights. He doesnt have a Holyfield level chin and he isnt as elusive as Haye was in his prime. He needs to be a lot harder to hit to really hit the heights of the top 5 and pick up a trinket.
I think it’s pretty clear there’s reason to believe Usyk has the tools and ability to make the jump but your concerns are legitimate and will continue to be until he makes the jump and provides the answers. Whether he dominates the division is being debated already before we even know if he looks like he belongs in it, however likely it is that he does. I’m looking forward to seeing him against some of the HW contenders, he should add a lot to the talent level. Great points btw, thank you.
I'd like to see him against Breazeale. I think that's a very winnable fight for him and wouldn't pose a huge risk. Fight would probably look similar to Szpilka vs Wach last weekend, minus the knockdown.
I've received confirmation that Usyk would beat AJ in bout if it was scheduled 5 minutes ago. So why ease Usyk into the Heavies? Let's send him straight to AJ, Wilder and Dillian Whyte. Immediately.