29 October 2023 , 12:22
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Oleksandr Usyk has admitted he was surprised by Tyson Fury’s performance against Francis Ngannou on Saturday night.
Fury beat the former MMA star in Saudi Arabia but only by a controversial split decision after he was knocked down in the third round. The Gypsy King was awarded the win by two judges 96-93 and 95-94, with the third giving it to Ngannou 95-94.
Ngannou troubled Fury on his professional boxing debut, catching him with some powerful shots in the early rounds. He opened up a cut on his opponent’s head before flooring him with a left hook. Fury's WBC heavyweight belt was not on the line inside the Boulevard Hall stadium in Riyadh, but it was not a convincing performance ahead of a hugely anticipated fight against Usyk.
Usyk holds the WBA, IBF and WBO belts and is due to fight Fury for the undisputed heavyweight title next. He was ringside for the fight and was caught on camera looking shocked when Fury was dropped in the third round.
“I had an impression that he was playing. I'm not thinking about [whether he was playing possum] but I will be training 100 per cent,” he later told Fight Hub TV. “But listen, it's boxing. Maybe it was the element of surprise. Maybe. I think it was [a] show.”
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Asked whether it made him feel more confident about facing Fury, Usyk said: “I don't know, I have no idea. Listen, [Ngannou] is a world champion at MMA, that was a hard punch. Then there's the element of surprise. Maybe Tyson Fury didn't take it seriously, ‘Oh it's an MMA fighter blah blah blah’. I don't know.
Francis Ngannou knocked down Tyson Fury (Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)Asked about the knockdown, he added: “Of course I was surprised. I watched the knockdown and I said, ‘Oh, oh, oh Francis! Be careful please!’ I was saying, ‘Tyson! Jab, jab jab, move, jab!’ I was saying that.”
Speaking after his contentious win was confirmed, Fury gave credit to his opponent. "That definitely wasn't in the script," he told TNT Sports. “I got caught round the back of the head [for the knockdown]. I wasn't hurt. I got up and got back to my boxing. He's an awkward man and a good puncher and I respect him a lot. He's given me one of my toughest fights of the last 10 years.”
Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk faced off after the fight (Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)Promoter Frank Warren said fans will have to wait for the fight between Fury and Usyk, who beat Daniel Dubois in his last fight in August after previous negotiations with Fury’s camp broke down. "We were going to do it on 23 December. I doubt that will happen now," Warren told the BBC.
"Tyson can't be going into a camp after a tough fight like that. That's eight weeks away. He needs at least a bit of time to get himself, his body, back into shape. Let it heal. Then get into a camp. It will be on early next year."
Speaking in the ring after the fight, Fury said: “It's not up to me, I'm a fighter, he's a fighter, I'm sure we'd go now. Listen, if these guys will sort it all out and it will be on then it will be our next fight guaranteed."