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He almost looks fat already at cruiserweight. Obviously he's not, he's in incredible shape, but he looks maxed out. He already has so much muscle on his arms, it looks like it's already not his best weight. As in, as good as he is at 200 lbs, his punches already look a little sluggish and sloppy, they dont snap out of his guard as quickly as they would if he was fighting at 190 lbs for example. If there was still a 190 lbs division, I think Usyk would be leaner, faster, and better. I think 200 is already not ideal for him. So the idea of him moving up even further, I just think it will slow him down a lot more than someone who is very lean moving up in weight, like Crawford. Crawford could probably move to 160 and not lose much handspeed. But Usyk is already maxed out.
For example, I saw his former opponent, the underrated Michael Hunter, move up to heavyweight, and he was SO much slower. He lost an incredible amount of speed.
With all that said, maybe it is possible for Usyk to add 10 lbs of muscle to his legs, only? Or his abs. Build up the calves to increase punching power and punch resistance, build up the abs to increase punching power and punch resistance to the body, build up the neck to increase punch resistance, and build up the rest of the legs to increase punching power. Between those four areas, Usyk could probably add 15 lbs, anyway, without slowing down the arms at all.
So, I guess it could be done. But if he bulks up anymore in his arms, I think it's already slowing him down and I think it will slow him down a whole lot if he takes it even further.
Also, Usyk's defense and his guard are both not as good as advertised. His guard is weak, punches break through it easily, think the opposite of prime GGG who had an amazing guard (which is why people who said his defense ****** because of his lack of head movement were missing a key factor in what made him so good in his prime), or Lomachenko who has a better guard than Usyk, and way better head movement and defense overall than both Usyk or GGG.
Usyk's defense I would put below Pacquiao's, even. I think Usyk's skill training is at a more complex, higher level than Pacquiao's, but Pacquiao is quicker all around than Usyk which allows him to unload his punches without staying in the pocket as long. So Usyk might be more skilled but just due to athleticism and experience, Pacquiao's defense was better overall, and obviously his handspeed and power were also better. Usyk way better jab though and goes to the body more consistently and better.
For example, I saw his former opponent, the underrated Michael Hunter, move up to heavyweight, and he was SO much slower. He lost an incredible amount of speed.
With all that said, maybe it is possible for Usyk to add 10 lbs of muscle to his legs, only? Or his abs. Build up the calves to increase punching power and punch resistance, build up the abs to increase punching power and punch resistance to the body, build up the neck to increase punch resistance, and build up the rest of the legs to increase punching power. Between those four areas, Usyk could probably add 15 lbs, anyway, without slowing down the arms at all.
So, I guess it could be done. But if he bulks up anymore in his arms, I think it's already slowing him down and I think it will slow him down a whole lot if he takes it even further.
Also, Usyk's defense and his guard are both not as good as advertised. His guard is weak, punches break through it easily, think the opposite of prime GGG who had an amazing guard (which is why people who said his defense ****** because of his lack of head movement were missing a key factor in what made him so good in his prime), or Lomachenko who has a better guard than Usyk, and way better head movement and defense overall than both Usyk or GGG.
Usyk's defense I would put below Pacquiao's, even. I think Usyk's skill training is at a more complex, higher level than Pacquiao's, but Pacquiao is quicker all around than Usyk which allows him to unload his punches without staying in the pocket as long. So Usyk might be more skilled but just due to athleticism and experience, Pacquiao's defense was better overall, and obviously his handspeed and power were also better. Usyk way better jab though and goes to the body more consistently and better.
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