Comments Thread For: Oleksandr Usyk eying a return to cruiserweight after Tyson Fury rematch

[dan_cov]

The replies here are exactly why he should do it.

They said he couldn't clear CW, then they said he couldn't go to HW and was too small now they doubt he can go back down and beat the current gen

WARRR USYK!

[elfag]

theres nobody even worth fighting at cruiser

go through all that trouble just to fight Jai and Zurdo? who even cares.


the only "super fight" would be if beterbiev moves up to cruiser and they meet there. it would be cool if they were both younger. beter is so injury prone though, by the time they fight he would be like 41 years old. hes just trying to get through the rematch which is already delayed now just like the first bivol fight

[elfag]

The replies here are exactly why he should do it.

They said he couldn't clear CW, then they said he couldn't go to HW and was too small now they doubt he can go back down and beat the current gen

WARRR USYK!

were there really that many people saying he couldnt clear cruiser? it was obvious he was the best cruiser. i think the division was better back then too compared to today, which is why it makes little sense for him to go back and do what clear a weaker cruiser division than he already did.

[TheOneAboveAll]

This writer is so desperate for a story that he'll believe Usyk when he says Bam is next. This is just standard Usyk banter. If anything he should make history by moving down and becoming undisputed (WBC/WBA) Bridgerweight champion.

[dan_cov]

were there really that many people saying he couldnt clear cruiser? it was obvious he was the best cruiser. i think the division was better back then too compared to today, which is why it makes little sense for him to go back and do what clear a weaker cruiser division than he already did.

It wasn't so clear cut back then I think many fancied Briedis at the start of the tournament and a lot liking Gassiev after he brutally dispatched Dorticos.
Usyk vs Gassiev closed with the bookies being unable to split them.

The CW division was much deeper then but I am not sure any was quite the level of Jai Opetaia even though his resume lacks in comparison.

With so many fighters going back down less in weight and being unsuccessful against far lesser fighters than Jai it would make him doing it be even more impressive.

He'd be 38 by then, going back down and potentially recapturing undisputed against a peak, undefeated monster in Jai Opetaia would be huge. That is history right there. I think it does more for his legacy than maybe anything left at HW. If its to go back down and fight say Zurdo yeah skip that

[TheOneAboveAll]

It wasn't so clear cut back then I think many fancied Briedis at the start of the tournament and a lot liking Gassiev after he brutally dispatched Dorticos.
Usyk vs Gassiev closed with the bookies being unable to split them.

The CW division was much deeper then but I am not sure any was quite the level of Jai Opetaia even though his resume lacks in comparison.

With so many fighters going back down less in weight and being unsuccessful against far lesser fighters than Jai it would make him doing it be even more impressive.

He'd be 38 by then, going back down and potentially recapturing undisputed against a peak, undefeated monster in Jai Opetaia would be huge. That is history right there. I think it does more for his legacy than maybe anything left at HW. If its to go back down and fight say Zurdo yeah skip that

I agree that Jai is a lot better than many other fans give him credit for, but he's been there, done that. After Usyk KO's Fury this weekend, a fight against a cruiserweight (especially one completely unknown outside of hardcore fan circles) is just going to be a novelty act that neither the fans nor Usyk himself could get up for. Screw it. He should just fight Canelo.

[TyrantT316]

I'm in that camp of belief that he is curious about that challenge of unifying and becoming undisputed again. He's already reached the pinnacle at heavyweight and to have to defend it versus all dangerous big boy punchers with youth is too risky at this point in his career. I too believe there is a bit of nostalgia in the process of unifying the title.

At 37 I don't know how much his body can handle it though. All his heavyweight fights have been tough similar to Holyfield being the smaller man. And all I could think about is Chris Byrd when he talked about moving back down.

This doesn't mean that he's absolutely going to do it. I'm pretty sure he's talking through what he's considering. It's hard for successful boxers to go out when they feel they still have something left or there is a challenge that awaits. Regardless of how old they are, their competitive nature still remains. At this particular point in time before the second Fury fight he does not seem ready to give up the sport. Depending on how the fury fight goes that may change.

[MeanestNiceGuy]

Why not face the likes of Zhang and Bakole at Heavyweight instead of moving back down to a division that he cleaned out? There's nothing at Cruiserweight.

[NihonJim]

Why not face the likes of Zhang and Bakole at Heavyweight instead of moving back down to a division that he cleaned out? There's nothing at Cruiserweight.

Bakole vs Usyk is the fight I want to see, the last pressure fighter Usyk fought at heavyweight was Chisora and that was an interesting fight.

[Toffee]

The replies here are exactly why he should do it.

They said he couldn't clear CW, then they said he couldn't go to HW and was too small now they doubt he can go back down and beat the current gen

WARRR USYK!

It would be an incredible achievement.

He could win Bridgerweight on his way down.

If he beats Fury again there's nothing left for him to prove.