Oleksandr Usyk is in for the first stoppage loss of his career against Tyson Fury according to three-weight world champion, James Toney.
Toney officially retired in 2017, with a professional record of 92 fights, 77 wins and 10 losses. He ended 47 of those successful nights by stoppage.
‘The Dark Emperor’ started off his career at middleweight before climbing the divisions. Like Usyk, he found success at both cruiserweight and heavyweight.
The Class of 22 Hall-of-Famer fought John Ruiz for the world heavyweight title in 2005, but the bout was later ruled a no contest due to his failed doping test coming to light.
Usyk has a real chance to go from being the undisputed 200lb champion to doing the same at heavyweight. He currently holds three of the four major belts, and is in discussions with Fury to fight for the final one.
Toney, though, told FightHype that he doesn’t see the Ukrainian lasting five rounds.
“He getting knocked out. He’s a perfect size for Tyson Fury. He’s going to run into some shots. I will say the fight goes four or five rounds.”
The prediction follows the same pattern that many others do, in that it’s extremely hard to overlook the size and weight difference. Fury is a reported 6′9″ to Usyk’s 6′3″.
There’s a 7 inch reach advantage for ‘The Gypsy King’ too, not to mention he came to the ring weighing 270lb for his last fight – Usyk was 50lb lighter than that.
Of course, the Ukrainian sees the size disparity as a challenge, and fans must remember that Anthony Joshua’s bulk did little to deter him. He’ll enter the ring confident of his speed and movement against the bonafide super-heavyweight frame of Fury.
The latest updates from behind the scenes are that Wembley Stadium will now play host should the fight be made. There are, however, new issues with purse splits now that Middle Eastern money is off the table.