TYSON FURY has written off Oleksandr Usyk’s heavyweight chances and tipped Joe Joyce to ‘nail him’.
Usyk was the undisputed cruiserweight king before he moved up to heavyweight, where he has won twice.
He is currently Anthony Joshua’s mandatory challenger, but with Fury in line for an undisputed title decider, the Ukrainian will fight for the interim belt.
And the man lined up for Usyk is unbeaten Joyce, who was beaten by the masterful southpaw in the amateurs.
But the Gypsy King backs his fellow Brit to gain revenge in the pros and run through the London 2012 Olympic Games gold medalist.
Fury, 32, told Behind The Gloves: “Easy, Joyce stopping him. I don’t think Usyk is the big threat everyone once thought he was a few years ago.
“When he was a cruiserweight, he was good. He’s had two fights at heavyweight and struggled in both of them, really.
“He didn’t look great against Chazz Weatherspoon, Weatherspoon was out the ring years and years and years.
“And he didn’t look good against Chisora. I thought Chisora nicked a draw to be honest. So yeah, he didn’t look great.
“And I think big Joe will walk through him, be like a middleweight versus a super-heavyweight and I fancy big Joe to nail him.”
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Usyk, 34, became Joshua’s mandatory challenger as soon as he moved up to heavyweight, per a ruling by the WBO.
But he will have to settle for the interim strap for now, which promises him a title shot or the chance to inherit it if the belt becomes vacant.
Talks with Joyce, 35, have stalled as of late, as Usyk pushed to get the next shot at Joshua, 31, ahead of Fury, 32.
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
