Tony Bellew had a 34 fight professional career before switching to punditry, meaning he’s seen plenty of talent in the boxing ring.
Any good boxer will tell you how important footwork is in their game, with a good defence starting from the bottom. Where fighters place their feet before trading can often be the deciding factor in who comes out on top of the exchange.
The former World Cruiserweight Champion has heaped high praise onto his final opponent, Oleksandr Usyk, for having some of the best he’s ever seen. Bellew told Golf Life just good how the Ukrainian was from personal experience.
“He’s just exceptional. He’s the best I ever faced by a considerable amount. Just quality … His footwork is on another level to anyone I’ve ever seen.
He’s not a big puncher. People will go ‘well he stopped you’ – yeah, he stopped me because he made me that bleedin’ tired my nan could stop me at that point.”
The pair fought in 2018. The TKO loss in the eighth was Bellew’s final fight.
It also marked Usyk’s last contest at cruiserweight, moving up eleven months later to start a heavyweight campaign that would ultimately see him become unified world champion in three fights.
In theory, he’s one fight away from becoming undisputed, although negotiations with Tyson Fury collapsed not so long ago. If they do meet in the ring, Bellew’s backing Usyk.
“He’s just outstanding at what he does. I actually think the the way Fury’s changed his style now – he’s now an aggressive counter puncher who looks to knock people out – I think that’ll play into Usyk’s hands.
With three belts to his name, Usyk is set to start facing his mandatory challengers. First up is Daniel Dubois – a young fighter who Bellew believes will be schooled.