British trainer Dave Coldwell has joined many well-known faces in boxing by making his prediction for the rumoured undisputed title fight between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk.
Fury-Usyk is undoubtedly one of the must-see fights of 2023, and it seems to be on track to happen with Usyk’s team setting a deadline of March 4th and Fury’s side seemingly happy to make that timeframe.
A win for either fighter would crown a first undisputed heavyweight champion since Lennox Lewis. Speaking to iD Boxing, Coldwell sided with the Brit to make history due to his naturally bigger frame.
“I rate Usyk, I think he is a great, great fighter. He’s got a great brain, great boxing ability, his feet are outstanding, but I do understand what everyone is saying about the size.
You’ve got a man that is just abnormal, what is he? Six-foot-nine? Something like that. He’s 6”9’, he is long, but he knows how to use his height, his reach, he knows how to lean on and use his weight when it comes to those clinches.
He gets caught with one shot, but he knows how to make sure you don’t catch him with the next shot. Whenever you are the man that is reaching to try and get inside and get your shots off, it can be frustrating and you can walk onto shots.”
Coldwell went onto say that he believes the man from Morecambe will slow Usyk down as the fight goes on, but did point out that he would pick the Ukrainian to win if the gap in size was closed even slightly.
“Just the clipping shots, from a bigger man, that is a lot heavier and of that size, can just start slowing you down a little bit. Then that stops you from using your attributes.
I can see that the size will be the difference. If they were both the same size, I’d pick Usyk. Even if Fury was just a 6”3’, 6”4’ heavyweight, I would pick Usyk. But he is not. He is great because he knows how to use his attributes.
He can both either southpaw or orthodox, keep that same range, and have you falling in and falling short, and your timing just not being quite right.”
“I think it is a very, very difficult job for Usyk. I don’t think it will be the best fight to watch, in terms of fans wanting to see drama and action, but from my point of view, I can’t wait to see how it all unfolds. I think it is going to be such an intelligent fight and a great chess match.”
With draft contracts now sent to Team Usyk, it may not be long until the predictions are put to the test.