Oleksandr Usyk is a famously cool, calm and collected character and now he has given his response to Tyson Fury’s rumoured weight ahead of their fight this weekend.
Weight and size have long been a key talking point for this fight. Usyk is of course the naturally much smaller man who has come up from cruiserweight. A fine cruiserweight he was, though, unifying the division and becoming undisputed four-belt champion before moving up to heavyweight.
In this banner division, he has fared just as well against men much bigger than him including Derek Chisora, then Anthony Joshua whom he beat twice to win and then defend the WBA, WBO and IBF world titles, and most recently Daniel Dubois who he beat via knockout in the mid-to-late rounds.
Fury meanwhile is used to fighting men smaller than him, even in his own division, though maybe not quite as small as Usyk. That might of factored into his camp, with many people saying he looks as lean and fit and light as he ever has, and his own father suggesting he might well come into the fight at his lowest-ever weight.
Speaking via Matchroom, Usyk responded to seeing Fury walk about on stage at one of the pre-fight events this week and was asked if he looked smaller.
“Yeh, a little bit, like skinny.”
He was then asked about his plan for the fight and if he would share it.
“No, Tyson Fury now maybe see me. I have plan, better plan, great plan. It’s a new performance for me. We prepare only boxing, this is a good show right now, but then it’s the boxing.”
Usyk is a real road warrior who has always won on away soil and never fought back home as a professional and he was asked about that.
“I like boxing. I very like boxing. I can go to different countries, England, Saudi, USA, for me it doesn’t matter where I will be boxing, because I like boxing, because my Lord helps me.”
He was then asked for a final message for the fans back home in Ukraine.
“Listen, I really appreciate the support. I love my fans, thank you so much.”
There are only days to go until we find out what that plan is and whether or not it will work, and Usyk has also recent sent a message to his opponent’s father about him headbutting a member of his team earlier in the week.
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