Unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk could face Tyson Fury in a unification clash instead of rematching Anthony Joshua, according to Usyk's coach Sergey Lapin.
Lapin, a long term friend and integral part of Usyk's setup, believes the undisputed showdown with the Gypsy King has the potential to be an historical night.
“In the near future we will find out the date of the Oleksandr Usyk and Anthony Joshua rematch. But maybe we'll find out something else interesting", he explained on the MyBettingSites blogs.
”Why not assume such an option as Fury-Usyk? It would be interesting for boxing fans, a historical event.
“If you remember a year ago, fans were waiting for a fight for the undisputed world champion in the heavyweight division between Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua - but literally in a moment, everything changed.
“At this stage, I think everything is possible, everything is constantly changing. The battle for an undisputed champion in the heavyweight division is a very cool event that has not been held for more than 20 years.
“If this fight between my fighter Usyk and Tyson Fury took place, it would really be a confrontation between two guys with high boxing IQ. It seems to me the fight would be more like a chess game, and victory will be in the hands of the one who will perform his task as productively as possible.
“To date, there is no exact information about this fight, but recently I noticed that there is a lot of talk about it. Perhaps we will find out something interesting very soon.”
Tyson Fury concluded his trilogy with Deontay Wilder in spectacular fashion, knocking out the brave American in round 11 after both men had tasted the canvas. Fury has reinvented himself under trainer Sugar Hill and used his natural size to drain Wilder's gas tank, leaning his 19 stone frame on his man at every opportunity.
Lapin believes Usyk, the man who unified the titles at cruiserweight, will need to overcome these tactics in order to repeat his achievements in the heavyweight division.
"Usyk is ready for any challenges, especially if he may have the opportunity to combine all the belts in heavyweight, his advantage over other heavyweight boxers is the ability to box, and it's worth a lot. Fury's style can be very dirty, if Usyk copes with Fury's dirty style, then victory will be his.”
