Top Rank promoter Todd DuBoef feels that Tyson Fury was lackadaisical and took things for granted in his fight against Oleksandr Usyk last May. That resulted in Fury (34-1-1, 24 KOs) fading in the middle rounds and losing a 12-round split decision in Riyadh.
Fury got hurt by a shot on the nose in the eighth and then was staggered by a left from Usyk in the ninth round. Fury looked in bad shape and likely would have been stopped if not for the referee giving him a standing eight count after he’d fallen against the ropes.
DuBoef expects the former WBC heavyweight champion Fury to be improved for his rematch against WBA, WBC, and WBO champ Usyk (22-0, 14 KOs) on December 21st at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh.
In Duboef’s view, Fury’s problems were a result of him letting off after starting well in the early rounds. However, it looks more like a case of Fury’s old habits coming back to haunt him with his decision to use the ropes to lean on to avoid headshots. Normally, that works for him in his fights, but it didn’t this time. Usyk pummeled him with shots.
The 36-year-old Fury has lost some weight, and he has plenty of time to trim down more pounds before the rematch with Usyk in December. If Fury’s weight was the culprit behind his poor performance in the first fight against Usyk, he should have taken care of that in the rematch.
“In those middle rounds, it felt like he was just teeing off on him, and I think he just got a little lackadaisical and confident,” Todd DuBoef said to Sky Sports Boxing. “I think he learned a lesson, and it was a hard lesson. But I also believe the other guy’s going to be better this time because he has more confidence.
“I think he’s going to not take things for granted, and I think he learned a hard lesson.”
Fury’s lackluster performance last time may not be a case of him being a “little lackadaisical, as DuBoef believes, but rather him fighting a more talented fighter than him.
Usyk is far more advanced than the guys that Fury has been feasting on during his pro career, and he’s not been facing the cream of the crop since 2015. Fury’s best win since his best-career victory over 39-year-old Wladimir Klitschko is Deontay Wilder, and he’s nowhere near elite-level.
