Heavyweight Derek Chisora had a ringside seat for Oleksandr Usyk’s win over Daniel Dubois and he had one main takeaway from the fight that he has shared as a warning to Tyson Fury.
Aside from one controversial moment in the fifth round, the consensus is that Usyk won the majority of his WBO, WBA and IBF world title defense against Dubois. The 25-year-old challenger did better than many expected and did make the rounds competitive but was put down twice before the referee stopped the fight in the ninth round.
Ukrainian southpaw Usyk was more aggressive than we have seen him in previous fights, often coming forward with a view to trying to stop Dubois sooner than he has in the past. The result was that he was less fleet of foot and more available to be hit than the slickster often has been throughout his career.
While some have attributed this to a decline in his athleticism and think it gives Tyson Fury an edge in any proposed unification fight between the two, former Usyk victim Chisora disagrees.
Speaking to FightHubTV, the Londoner said he thinks it was simply a temporary change in tactics, with more to come in the future.
“I know Usyk will change the way he boxes when he fights the Gypsy King. That is it.”
Retired fighter turned pundit Spencer Oliver expanded.
“The way that you’re going to have to beat Usyk is going in there and ruffing him up. You’ve got to move into range, get your feet into range and let your hands go.”
As all 21 of Usyk’s losing opponents have found out so far, that is easier said than done.