Oleksandr Usyk is undefeated 21 fights, beating the likes of Michael Hunter, Mairis Briedis, Murat Gassiev, Anthony Joshua and Daniel Dubois.
Despite that stellar record, there are some fighting legends who think he and his fellow heavyweights wouldn’t last in their own eras.
One such man is James Toney – a three-weight world champion with 72 wins from 92 fights and no stoppages in the ten he lost.
Speaking to Marko Boxing, Toney delivered a damning verdict of the current heavyweight scene, calling Deontay Wilder ‘garbage’ before saying Tyson Fury should be ashamed of himself for his performance against Francis Ngannou.
“Man, Tyson Fury should be ashamed of himself. He is the best in the world right now, then you got Wilder then Joshua. To be honest with you, I don’t know who else.”
‘Lights Out’ Toney was reminded of Usyk – the slick southpaw focusing much more on skill and movement over power who was previously undisputed at cruiserweight.
“Oh he’s garbage … The right time, the right moment. If he was in my era he’d be getting destroyed left and right. Basically everybody today we’d destroy. Hell no [they wouldn’t last in my era] – or the seventies or the eighties.”
Toney was initially successful in his challenge for a heavyweight title in 2005, although was later stripped of the belt due to a failed doping test.
Regardless of any fantasy talk of past match-ups, Fury and Usyk are looking to become the standout heavyweight from this era, and one will do so on February 17 when they put all four belts on the line and crown an undisputed champion.
The historic bout, set for Riyadh Saudi Arabia, has been signed and announced.