'What I know' - Anthony Joshua gives Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk prediction
18.05.2024 - 04:27
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
Anthony Joshua has labelled Oleksandr Usyk as a "phenomenal fighter" and backed the Ukrainian to defeat Tyson Fury in this weekend's undisputed heavyweight title fight.
The Gypsy King will face Usyk in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Saturday night in the bid to become the first undisputed heavyweight champion since Lennox Lewis in 1999 with the WBF, IBF, WBO and WBC titles all on the line.
Usyk, though, has established himself as one of the most feared fighters in the world since jumping from cruiserweight to heavyweight after defending his titles against Tony Bellew in 2018 and has since recorded impressive wins over the likes of Derek Chisora, Joshua (2021 and 2022) and Daniel Dubois.
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And Joshua is expecting Usyk to add to his hit list by inflicting a first-career defeat on Fury at the Kingdom Arena on Saturday night.
"Well look I've fought Oleksandr Usyk so I can go only speak on what I have experienced from him," Joshua told talkSPORT earlier this week. "Phenomenal fighter, does everything to a tee and I would say he is going to do a really good job."
Usyk beat Joshua for the first time at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in September 2021 by unanimous decision to become the unified heavyweight champion on a night that saw the Briton lose his WBA, WBO, IBF and IBO titles.
And in a rematch between the pair 11 months later, Usyk was again victorious as he beat Joshua by split decision in Saudi Arabia.
"I have never fought Tyson Fury so I can't really speak on how he will perform or what it is like to face him," added Joshua. "So only speaking on what I know, I would