Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk made a formal announcement for their undisputed fight this week with a launch press conference in London.
The two heavyweight champions will battle it out in Saudi Arabia on February 17 for the WBC – currently held by Fury – WBA, WBO and IBF – all Usyk’s.
The Ukrainian was typically reserved at the launch press conference, even in the face of a barrage of insults from Fury that he seems to reel off whenever he’s in his fellow champion’s company.
Calls of ‘ugly little man’ and ‘rabbit’ didn’t impress one Carl Froch, who said it was boring and embarrassing on TalkSPORT.
“I think it’s old hat. When he starts with the name-calling and personal insults on physical appearances I just think it’s not manly. It’s funny at the start … it’s probably why he struggles to get sponsorship let’s be honest. It’s a hard sell for a company when he’s got the mouth he’s got. The potty mouth.”
“When I watched it the other day, I’ve got to be honest, I’m bored of listening to him. He’s embarrassing himself. I thought Oleksandr Usyk was pure class … He came out of this looking very good and Tyson Fury is now the bad guy that everybody wants to lose. I’m not talking about myself, I’m talking about the feedback and the comments you read.”
Froch says Fury has crossed the line in trying to sell the fight through trash talk, believing the act has turned the fans against him.
“Him and his dad, I think it’s embarrassing … You’re representing your sport, yourself, your county and another country in Saudi Arabia – they must be looking at this thinking what is going off. Is this really how they conduct business? There’s often needle in fights but there’s always a line we don’t cross, and Tyson Fury time and time again crosses that line.”
“I don’t talk to anybody who wants Tyson Fury to win this fight. He’s turned everybody against him.”
The reaction to the press conference has been mixed, with some seeing signs of Fury being ‘rattled’ whilst others claim it’s the motivation he needs ahead of the biggest fight of his career.