Comments Thread For: Fury Too Flawed For All-Time Greatness, But Perfectly Flawed For Fan-Friendliness

[trippleupper]

Wasn't there an article a day or two before the fight saying how both fighters were "flawless"?

[kafkod]

So Fury can't be an ATG because he lost to a Ukrainian.

But Lennox Lewis is an ATG, even though he got ironed out, in his prime, by 2 guys who that Ukrainian would probably beat back-to-back on the same night, without breaking a sweat.

But wait .. Lennox got beat by 2 American fighters, not a damned Ukrainian! And he came back and avenged both those losses .. in the US!

And in the eyes of US boxing journalists, America is the home of HW boxing. And if you want to remembered as an ATG HW boxer you need to be either American or fighting and defeating Americans on US soil.

Meanwhile, in the real world ....

[Toffee]

Whilst I think it's unlikely, very unlikely, if he was to win a usyk rematch and then beat AJ then yes he would be an ATG for me.

Saying it can't happen. Because he has one relatively close loss to Usyk is a bit ridiculous, LL got flattened by Rahman in his prime, Rahman was nowhere in the same galaxy of quality as Usyk.

If a rematch happens, Fury comes out and dominates it, then people will say oh Usyk got lucky with that shot in the 9th of the first fight or some nonsense, this is how boxing fans are.

Like I say it's unlikely and I would bet against it, but it's not totally out of the realms of possibility it's really up to Fury if he wants to shoot for that goal or not. Fury is a weird one, you don't know if this loss will mentally ruin him or turn him into the incredible hulk.

You're only as good as your last fight while you're fighting.

Only once their careers are done will we be able to fully judge their bodies of work.

It's not ridiculous that Fury beats Usyk, then beats Joshua and ends up the best of the era.

It's more likely Usyk beats Fury again and retires with his reputation slightly enhanced.

What happens if Fury beats Usyk and then fights, and loses, to Joshua? It's possible.

They're going to have to retire for this to be finished. And Usyk might. His body of work will stack up regardless but I don't see how it gets much better from here... he'll just be adding exclamation marks.

[kafkod]

Wasn't there an article a day or two before the fight saying how both fighters were "flawless"?

I think that was because they were both undefeated, and one of them just lost his 0.

This illustrates a problem with modern day boxing, especially in the US. Not losing to anybody is seen as more important than beating everybody.

[_Rexy_]

That coke binge/ eating binge after Wlad was his biggest downfall. Instead of improving after that Wlad win he declined. Also I think at this stage of his career he has become too rich/ too much invested as a family man instead of a hungry fighter. If the Fury after Wlad kept on improving he would pose trouble for most fighters on the ATG list because he is a real pain to deal with due to his size, boxing skills and grit. Usyk got him at the right time that is all.

First MF to ever go on a coke AND eating binge at the same time.

[Nash out]

1. His career is not done yet.
2. Many had him beating Usyk.
3. He could still beat Usyk 2-1 in a trilogy (could)
4. He loses a very close fight to another ATG and suddenly he is second-tier? Yet...
5. Lennox Lewis gets knocked out by two boxers not in Usyk's class and it's swept under the rug? And I could pick out similar in every 'Elite' boxer you mentioned.

Usyk AND Fury are up there with any of them...Ever! If two greats fight, barring the rare draw, SOMEBODY has to lose.

So, let's say with your 1 and 2, by your logic, if Ali beat Louis, then Louis is suddenly second rate too.

People, I keep telling you all. Learn from the Great Nash. He's taught me everything I know about boxing. Nash out

[Roberto Vasquez]

Fury is the perfect fan fighter because he makes a lot of noise - is entertaining and almost never fights anyone good.

So Fury can't be an ATG because he lost to a Ukrainian.

I would say it's really because of Fury's record. He has only defended his title 4 times (?) and has now fought only THREE top-10 guys in 8 years.

Fury could have 4 losses by now but if had he beat a ton of top level fighters - he would be an ATG for sure.

Look at how Uysk did it - fought AJ twice within 5 minutes of arriving in HW division and then chased Fury for a fight. Fury even went to MMA to try to avoid him.

[kafkod]

Whilst I think it's unlikely, very unlikely, if he was to win a usyk rematch and then beat AJ then yes he would be an ATG for me.

Saying it can't happen. Because he has one relatively close loss to Usyk is a bit ridiculous, LL got flattened by Rahman in his prime, Rahman was nowhere in the same galaxy of quality as Usyk.

If a rematch happens, Fury comes out and dominates it, then people will say oh Usyk got lucky with that shot in the 9th of the first fight or some nonsense, this is how boxing fans are.

Like I say it's unlikely and I would bet against it, but it's not totally out of the realms of possibility it's really up to Fury if he wants to shoot for that goal or not. Fury is a weird one, you don't know if this loss will mentally ruin him or turn him into the incredible hulk.

You're only as good as your last fight while you're fighting.

Only once their careers are done will we be able to fully judge their bodies of work.

It's not ridiculous that Fury beats Usyk, then beats Joshua and ends up the best of the era.

It's more likely Usyk beats Fury again and retires with his reputation slightly enhanced.

What happens if Fury beats Usyk and then fights, and loses, to Joshua? It's possible.

They're going to have to retire for this to be finished. And Usyk might. His body of work will stack up regardless but I don't see how it gets much better from here... he'll just be adding exclamation marks.

It's definitely possible for Fury to beat Usyk in a rematch. HW boxing is inherently unpredictable, which is what makes it so exciting. And both men will be in their late 30s by the time the rematch happens, which adds another unpredictable factor to the equation.

[Tibburon245]

A guy 270 lbs beating a guy 230 lbs does not give any credence to Fury being "one of the best." They need a super-heavyweight division starting at 230.

[sidefx996]

lololol don’t ever compare Fury to Floyd. Ever in your life.

We’re talking about a guy who almost got stopped by Wilder. Lost to an MMA fighter. Robbed Otto Wallin off a stoppage. You want to compare him with the greatest fighter of the past 3 decade?

Fury isn't Floyd, but he DIDN'T get stopped by Wilder, he DIDN'T lose to Ngannou, and besides a good punch that cut Fury and a few good moments, Fury dominated Wallin on the scorecards. Understood you may not like him, but don't try to rewrite history either.