Former undisputed heavyweight champion Mike Tyson is still siding with Tyson Fury to overcome Oleksandr Usyk in their upcoming showdown.
On February 17 in Saudi Arabia, Fury and Usyk will collide in an undisputed fight with the IBF, IBO, WBA, WBO, WBC titles at stake.
The odds for the fight have become a lot closer after Fury’s recent performance against MMA veteran Francis Ngannou.
Last month, Fury secured a razor-close ten round split decision over Ngannou, who was making his professional debut.
Fury was expected to pull off an easy win in a complete mismatch, but it became a very competitive fight. Fury was dropped in the third round and had issues with Ngannou’s style. The unexpected punishment, which Fury took in the fight, forced the postponment of the Usyk bout to 2024.
Tyson had trained and advised Ngannou in the weeks leading up to that fight.
While Fury put in a poor performance, Tyson believes the ‘Gypsy King’ will eventually overpower the smaller Usyk.
“Hey, we should [not focus on what Fury did against Ngannou], but you have to understand he is still the champion. He made that night a great night. He gave Francis the opportunity and that was just a bad night at the office for him. We all have bad nights, and listen, that was his bad night,” Tyson told Fight Hub TV.
“I look forward to that fight [between Fury and Usyk]. That is going to be an interesting fight. I’m going towards Tyson Fury because I think he’s just going to overpower him. He’s going to catch up with him and overpower him.
“I got to go with Fury. I think he’s the best fighter in the world, especially in the heavyweight division. Great fighters lose, great fighters look bad, [but] that doesn’t stop them from being great fighters.”