Former two-time heavyweight champion Hasim Rahman says Tyson Fury is just a “shell” of the fighter he once was heading into his rematch against unified champ Oleksandr Usyk on December 21st in Riyadh.
Rahman feels that the punishment Fury (34-1-1, 24 KOs) absorbed in his three fights against Deontay Wilder has taken the best out of him, leaving a vulnerable fighter that fans saw getting beaten by Usyk earlier this year on May 18th.
Punch Resistance Gone
Fury’s fans say he did well in his three fights against Wilder, which is true, but he took some big headshots in those fights, getting dropped three times. He was arguably knocked out in the first and third fights but was spared by the referees.
The brutal right hands that Fury took from Deontay have aged him, leaving the fighter that Ushyk took advantage of by beating him from pillar to post in the ninth round last May.
Watching Fury get pummeled by Usyk and saved by the referee showed that Father Time is knocking on his door, letting him know that his career as a top-level fighter is over.
“I think Deontay Wilder got a big play in this Usyk and Tyson Fury rematch. I believe Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury took everything out of each other,” said Hasim Rahman to Fighthype, talking about his view that Tyson Fury is not the same fighter he once was heading into his rematch with Oleksandr Usyk on December 21st.
Fury continued to win after fighting Wilder for the last time in 2021, but his victories were over lower-level guys Derek Chisora, Dillian Whyte, and Francis Ngannou. Tyson’s performance against Ngannou was terrible, with him getting knocked down and not looking anything like the fighter he’d been eight years earlier.
“I think they’re both shells of their former selves, and I believe Usyk will win this rematch by stoppage,” Rahman said, predicting a knockout victory for Usyk over Fury. “I know he knows he can drop him and hurt him, and now I think the confidence is there. I think he’s going to win by stoppage.”
In Wilder’s case, he looks like he’s lost his confidence to throw his right hand, and his trainer hasn’t helped by turning him into a defensive fighter. Wilder never did have great punch resistance, and had gotten by with soft match-making during his reign as the WBC champion. He was a creation by his management, who kept him away from risky opposition for the most part.
“I think he should fight the winner of the Joshua-Dubois rematch and then call it quits,” Rahman said about Usyk. “The man did everything you can do in boxing. He’s pound-for-pound one of the greatest champions ever. He’s a gold medalist, undisputed cruiserweight, undisputed heavyweight. What else can you do? He’s done it all.”
If Joshua wins the rematch with Daniel Dubois, he’s going to go straight into the Fury fight because that’s one that His Excellency Turki Alalshikh wants. Usyk won’t get a chance until afterward.
“I don’t believe the top guys are going to be around by 2025. I think Fury, Usyk, and Joshua may be gone by the end of 2025. So, it’s a whole host of young guys coming up with the Bakoles,” said Rahman.
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