Can Oleksandr Usyk grow into a heavyweight contender?

If that was true he'd already be at HW where there's more money and fame instead of boiling himself down. He's a natural HW anyway. He looked a hell of a lot bigger than Briedis. Or establish a legacy at Cruiserweight first, which he seems fairly confident in doing, then moving on to demand much bigger purses at HW later on, achieving the same thing but with an established legacy..

I think with the current state of the HW division, he'd be a contender as soon as he moves up. The division is in its arguably weakest state in history The top two fighters - one has fought literally nobody, and the other has fought a fairly faded legend.

Chamberlain has sparred both and seems to give Usyk a very good chance. Also says Usyk was 220lbs 6 weeks out from fight and he brings himself down with strict diet and training. Doesnt seem like the type to get fat in between camps either.

He's better than everyone Wilder has faced in his entire career, he would have better odds at beating Joshua then current world champion Parker. Both Usyk and Gassiev will instantly be top 5 at Heavyweight when they move up, the division is really weak, there's Joshua and maybe Wilder if he can land one of his windmills after getting outboxed, and thats that. Division is totally whack. Just take a look at Povetkin vs Huck, Huck beat up Povetkin who is arguably a top 5 Heavyweight and Huck got embarrassed by Usyk.

He will not even win the wbss. He don't use his reach to the max, he would have to expose himself too much to land anything, with the big guys it's suicide Id be shocked if Usyk can accomplish as much as Chris byrd did.. Usyk isnt all that

He will not even win the wbss. He don't use his reach to the max, he would have to expose himself too much to land anything, with the big guys it's suicide

Ive said this all along but Usyk isnt great as his nuthuggers make him out to be. He is a good mover and a good boxer for his size but he isnt this ultra special talent. I personally dont find him that interesting. He looks like a killer but he is really a boxer. Im not blown away watching him fight. HW my ass lol he dont got it like that. Tbh, i havent seen the Breidis fight yet but im not surprised it was an even fight.

I don't think that's something he should pursue

You don't know what sub par means. Elite fighters of the division like Glowacki-Huck where barely able to land on Usyk, Other than Breidis who is the clear no.2 division Usyk was rarely hit. You don't know WTF you are talking about. If you want to talk sub-par defense how about Ward getting hit with the likes of Barrera-Alexander brand often in rounds? 4:35 gets you knocked out with that punch at HW, that's late in the fight too. He got hit plenty against Huck, Hunter, Mchunu etc. Usyk's offense is his defense, that's a no no at HW. Hunter, Mchunu, Brieidis, he's been hit a lot.

you don't have to win at HW to make more money in one fight than you will in five at CW. he will fight there, and probably within the next two years. one shot with joshua after a decent campaign and you can literally retire. charles martin reportedly got five million dollars to fight joshua. charles f#cking martin. that guy could hardly box.

He got a very close split d win in his last fight so that isn't exactly cleaning out cruiserweight. I think he loses to the best 3 or 4 heavyweights.

We have a weak Heavyweight division and a very strong Cruiserweight division. Usyk beats everybody at HW but Joshua and Povetkin. Breidis is quite underrated, he's probably #2 at Cruiserweight. He knocked Charr out cold and defeated Perez convincingly (albeit in an ugly fight). Perez is no slouch, he was a legit top 10 heavy at some point and has a win over Ortiz in the amateurs. Why do you think Usyk couldn't beat Joshua or Povetkin?

We have a weak Heavyweight division and a very strong Cruiserweight division. Usyk beats everybody at HW but Joshua and Povetkin. Breidis is quite underrated, he's probably #2 at Cruiserweight. He knocked Charr out cold and defeated Perez convincingly (albeit in an ugly fight). Perez is no slouch, he was a legit top 10 heavy at some point and has a win over Ortiz in the amateurs.

Low risk? :rofl: If that fight happens my money is going on Parker. Doesn't have the power to hurt Parker, isn't elusive enough to avoid getting hit and won't have a size advantage. Yeah. But Parker barely squeaked out a questionable hometown decision in Auckland over Andy Ruiz not long ago and Ruiz is no big hitter and shorter than Usyk. I'll give you that this is theoretical because we have no idea how Usyk is going to look at heavy. I'm certainly not bandwagon jumping for a guy who has never been in with the big boys. I have just never been terribly impressed by Parker, especially against a lethargic Takam. Maybe I'm underestimating Parker and he will change my mind when he gets in with Joshua. I can't see it, but I'm no huge fan of Joshua, so I'd be happy to eat my words.

He'll be a bigger puncher at HW and for all this lack of power talk he's hurt everyone he's ever faced. He'll be fine at HW. I sure as sh1t ain't buying Parker, Povetkin and those types being any better than a Breidis. Neither do I buy them being super durable both Fury and Wilder have been decked hard by smaller, lesser punchers. Its more like how will these big yops handle the speed, the movement, the angles, the counterpunching, the combination punching. None of them have stamina but Wilder, not one can put combinations together but Povetkin and he's gotta be roided to the gills in order to, none can cut a ring off. Frankly they're just big, not one is particularly skilled. People can only mention size and power cause its all they have. All of em combined couldn't make up 1 Riddick Bowe.

wilder would send his head to the moon 🌙 with a right hand.

I would be very surprised if he didnt reach the top 5. Without seeing him in with proper pro HW's, its impossible to say what he will achieve from there. People talk about his power, but its worth noting his footwork and speed would be blazing compared to big HWs. Also, I think his power will be better vs more stationary targets. He seems to struggle a little with accuracy at CW, which probably means he has to take some steam off his shots. With more confidence to be able to swing through the target he will probably have decent power. Not a one punch guy or anything, but enough to keep you honest. He will prob weight 215-220 odd lbs, a guy punching with speed and accuracy with well set up shots is going to hurt. You nailed a really important issue I forgot to put in my original post, what additional weight Usyk would carry into the division. I think you're right that about 215-220 would be his sweet spot where he'd be lean and strong. His frame can definitely support it. If he goes any higher, I think he'll end up in that slow and soggy range, like whenever Tomasz Adamek went over 215.

He could do well but we can never tell right now. He has all the skills in the world and he could take a punch. I know heavyweight is a different story but he still can do it if he does things the right way and gives himself time before he jumps in there with the super heavyweights. I don't see why he wouldn't be able to outbox Wilder after 2-3 fights at heavyweight and Joshua after like 5 fights. Evander Holyfield was smaller than Usyk and he was one of the best heavyweights ever, he also came from cruiserweight. He held his own very well against the best super heavyweight of all times in Lennox Lewis, who skill and experience-wise was light years ahead of the top big heavyweights now, and Usyk will net engage in unnecessary wars like Holyfield. If Usyk wants it and he's focused he can do it

He will eventually move up that's fairly certain. Heavyweight is where the money is. But let's see if he wins the WBSS first. For sure that's not a lock.

I think so. I think he could beat Parker for sure. Parker is the John Ruiz of the HW division. Only thing I worry about is his power and chin. How will his power translate to HW and how good is his chin at HW? But his skills are so far ahead of anyone at HW right now he could Chris Byrd his way to a HW title. I definitely agree with you about Parker. After Usyk fights Gassiev up the road, a Parker fight could be a nice, low-risk coming out party in the HW division. Hell, Gassiev is a real 6-foot-4, depending on how a fight between him and Usyk goes, they could rematch at heavyweight and put a ton of Eastern Euro Euros in the bank.