‘I will beat Joshua, even though I am smaller’ — Oleksandr Usyk
In the upcoming Saturday’s fight with WBO, IBF, WBA, and IBO heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua, unbeaten Olympic gold medalist Oleksandr Usyk is unafraid of the size advantage.
The fight with Joshua will take place at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in front of a hostile crowd of around 60,000 people.
Usyk is the smaller fighter who made the jump from cruiserweight to heavyweight in 2019.
When he won a huge twelve-round unanimous decision over Murat Gassiev in the final round of the World Boxing Super Series cruiserweight competition in 2018, he conquered the cruiserweight ranks and united the whole weight class.
He believes the fight with Joshua would begin like a boxing bout, with each fighter picking his areas.
Usyk has no reservations about the size or power differential based on the history of the heavyweight division, citing David Haye’s choice to move up to heavyweight and eventual massive win over a 7’1, 300+ pound Nikolai Valuev to prove his point.
“I think, at first, it will be chess,” Usyk said.
“People talk a lot. They say the truth, or they don’t say the truth. It’s all talk. We will see on Saturday what happens.
“The power is not about whether someone is big or small. It’s in your spirit. David Haye was three times smaller than Nikolai Valuev which shows that it doesn’t matter.”
Joshua doesn’t think Usyk is a pushover and expects a tough fight.
Joshua said, “These are the best days of my life.”
“I’m not an easy fight for anyone. I like fighting. There has to be a reason why I’m here. It has been quick. There has to be a reason. If you told me I was fighting King Kong, I’d give it a go.”