Connect with us

Boxing

George Foreman: “Tyson Fury has met his opponent”

Published

on

When George Foreman wondered who would win Saturday’s undisputed heavyweight championship fight between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk, he went back 50 years to the renowned “Rumble in the Jungle” against Muhammad Ali.

“Years ago when I fought Muhammad Ali, I could have won every round, but I had it in my head: ‘I’m going to knock out a guy who’s never been knocked out before,’” Foreman told BoxingScene on Wednesday.

“That’s the problem: trying to knock out someone who’s never been knocked out before. But [Usyk] he has the temperament to win every round and that’s it. Go back to his corner, drink some water and have a quick pep talk. Just win rounds. He’s got it.”

So despite his fondness for Fury, when Foreman was asked who would win the fight in Riyad, Saudi Arabia, he replied, “Tyson Fury has met his opponent.”

That opinion is largely influenced by Foreman’s admiration for the peaceful determination and focus of Usyk (21-0, 14 KO), a former Olympic gold medalist and undisputed cruiserweight champion.

“First of all, I thought it was a solid match and great matchmaking,” Foreman said. “[Usyk] isn’t gigantic, and the greatest heavyweight champions we’ve had all this time have been guys under 6-3 like Joe Louis (6-foot), Joe Frazier (6-foot-2), even Muhammad (Ali, listed at 6-foot-3).

“He lied! He was never 6-3!”

“But for some reason, coordination and plan thinking work well for guys this size.”

Additionally, Foreman, who turned 75 in January, is concerned that the 35-year-old Fury (34-0-1, 24 KOs) was beaten badly in fights and left defenseless after being knocked down twice by Deontay Wilder in 2018, twice more in a trilogy fight in 2021 and again in October by former UFC champion Francis Ngannou.

“Yes, please… Fury, he has been knocked down and suffered several brutal attacks to the point that he is now ready to attack,” Foreman said.

Foreman theorizes if Fury stays cautious, Usyk can shine with his boxing.

“All [Usyk] what he has to do is… if he is astute enough to win the first round and then the second. … OK, maybe you can give up the fourth round … but then come back and win another round,” Foreman said.

“He’s getting to the point where he doesn’t worry about anything other than winning on points. He’s a solid fighter. He can take a punch. Fury is in a tough situation. So if the judges are not the best judges that money can buy, [Usyk] should win.”

However, Fury has a reach advantage (85 to 78 inches), a height advantage (6-foot-9 to 6-foot-3), a weight advantage and his own impressive boxing skills that wear Usyk down by leaning on him.

Foreman was asked if he was downplaying all of this.

“It’s great that he has it. All those things you mentioned above are right,” he said. “He has the whole package to do it. But not with this guy.

“[Usyk’s] I was there with gigantic, elevated guys [beating former champion Anthony Joshua twice]and he’s not afraid.

“He is automatically built to be mentally powerful. It’s just a part of him. He has this ability. And this is its main advantage. Outside of that attitude, there’s nothing spectacular he can do to beat Fury.

Fury tried to verbally harass Usyk, repeatedly calling him a “sausage” and worse during a recent press conference.

“Some guys have never had anything but mental toughness. [Usyk’s] one of them. Go higher and score points,” Foreman said.

Foreman was asked if Usyk would become the undisputed heavyweight champion on top of everything he has achieved. Does that make him an all-time great if Foreman knows all his predecessors?

“No, it means a great rematch,” he said, knowing there was an agreement signed and planned to hold the second fight in Saudi Arabia in October. “First of all: rematch.”

But would the rematch be different?

“Sure, because then Fury will know that now he can lose. It’s a completely different fight – how you train, how you get in shape. Seriously. Get back on the road [Fury] fought [long-reigning heavyweight champion Wladimir] Klitschko [in 2015].

“He fought Klitschko until the very end. You have to fight anyway [Usyk].

“It’s an stimulating match. Of course I support Tyson Fury because he is exceptional in boxing. I’m a fan. But I won’t let that drive me here. I would like to see him stay and win a few more fights.”

As Foreman knows, after regaining the heavyweight title by knocking out Michael Moorer nearly 20 years after losing to Ali, nothing says more about the quality of a heavyweight champion than that he can lose the heavyweight title and then come back and win it again.

“Please,” Foreman said.

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Boxing

Andrew Moloney is confident that if given the chance, he would have beaten Phumelele Cafu and Kosei Tanaka

Published

on

Andrew Moloney (left) attacks Pedro Guevara – photo: Mikey Williams/Top Rank

Few people were more disappointed than Andrew Moloney when Kosei Tanaka lost his WBO super flyweight belt to Phumelele Cafu at the Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan on Monday night.

The 33-year-old Australian veteran was hoping to get a shot at beating Tanaka in the lucrative Japanese market.

Those dreams were dashed when South Africa’s Cafu delivered the performance of his life, knocking out Tanaka in the fifth round and finishing the fight strongly, beating the four-weight world champion by split decision.

“The plan was to target the WBO and really chase the Tanaka fight, but it all fell apart on Monday night,” Moloney (26-4-1NC, 16 KO) told The Ring. “I think the WBO is probably still the direction we go, but I’m not sure if they have a rematch clause or if Tanaka will take it. But after watching the fight yesterday, I would be really confident that I could fight one of these guys and win. We would like to follow this path.

“I would love to fight Tanaka in Japan as a four-division world champion. He’s definitely someone I’ve looked up to and wanted to fight for a long time.

“Last night was a little hard to watch. The way he performed, I’m more confident than ever that I have what it takes to beat Tanaka.

I assume there will be a rematch and I hope that Tanaka will regain the belt and I will be able to return to the ring and climb the rankings, and maybe this fight will still happen.

Tanaka entered Moloney’s orbit four years ago when he debuted at 115 pounds. Earlier this year, it looked like they were also on a collision course, with Moloney being number one in the WBO rankings. However, when an offer was made for the vacant IBF lightweight title fight between Vasily Lomachenko and George Kambosos Jr. in May in Perth, Western Australia, Moloney felt he couldn’t turn her down.

This decision ended in disaster. Moloney faced Carlos Cuadras, who withdrew from the fight with a ruptured Achilles tendon and was replaced by Pedro Guevara. Moloney entered the fight with a torn bicep and was largely reduced to boxing with one hand, which circumscribed his punching power.

Still, Moloney felt he did more than enough to win, and was shocked when Guevara was declared the winner by split decision. He was so disappointed that he announced immediately after the fight that he was leaving the ring, but a few days later he withdrew these comments.

It was a breakthrough moment in his career.

“Looking back, it’s a wonderful thing, but watching the Tanaka-Cafu fight made me think that maybe I would do a lot of things if I could turn back time a little bit,” Moloney explained.

“Before my last fight, I was number one in the WBO rankings and I rejected the option of waiting to fight Tanaka. But the opportunity arose to fight Guevara in Australia for the interim WBC title on a major card, and to be candid, I kind of regretted that the Tanaka fight was hanging in the balance, but ultimately we decided to stay busy and take the opportunity to fight in Australia.

“Also, the injury before the fight was another thing I thought about: will I undergo surgery, keep the top spot and wait for Tanaka, but I made the decision to go ahead with the fight with Guevara. Looking back now, maybe it wasn’t the smartest thing to do. And looking at the way Tanaka fought last night, I thought maybe I should have waited. I’m sure I could beat Tanaka and take the belt away from him.

“So I take some consolation, but unfortunately you can’t turn back time.”

It’s been a frustrating year for Moloney, but he’s still hitting the gym and his team is working to get him another fight. The window of opportunity to box again this year is closing quickly, but he still hopes to return to the ring in December, most likely in his native Australia.

“I really hope so,” he said. “That’s what I’ve been working on. I have been training strenuous at the gym for some time, quite a few months. I hope to return before the end of the year.

“At this stage it will probably be December. I’m trying to block something, but so far no luck. I’m still training away as if the fight was to take place in December, the team is currently working on it and I’m keeping my fingers crossed that we’ll be able to finish it.

“I just hope we can get out before the end of the year, get back into the winner’s circle and start climbing the rankings again.”

Moloney, who fought at bantamweight for the first three years of his professional career before dropping down to super flyweight, surprisingly, said he would even consider moving up to another weight class given the right opportunity.

“It’s a tough time in the super flyweight division,” said Moloney, the eighth challenger to The Ring’s 115-pound title. “There’s a lot going on and it’s always strenuous to plan which route to take because everything changes so quickly. I’d pick Bam Rodriguez to beat Guevara, then there’s talk of a rematch between Kazuto Ioka and Fernando Martinez on Up-to-date Year’s Eve. And then there’s talk of Bama, if they win, fighting the winner of that game in unification. The WBO seems to me the fastest way to win the title, so that’s the path we will follow.

“We have also rejected for some time the idea of ​​moving up to flyweight and getting crack there. There’s also some engaging scene going on there right now, but it’s still uncertain. I’d probably feel a little better at super flyweight, but we’ll have to wait and see what happens with Cafu and Tanaka, but like I said, I’d feel comfortable and confident against either of them, so hopefully he can make it it will happen sooner rather than later.”

Continue Reading

Boxing

Doubts that fuel 19-year-old Benjamin Johnson

Published

on

Despite an impressive amateur resume, welterweight Benjamin Johnson of Springdale, Maryland, enters the professional ring with a shoulder injury.

Johnson will face Kevin Pantoja in a four-round fight at Rosecroft Raceway in Fort Washington, Maryland, promoted by his trainer Lamont Roach Snr’s NoXcuses Promotions. The fight will be broadcast on Saturday on ProBox TV.

Johnson, 1-0 (1 KO), spent just 2:23 in the ring in his professional debut, displaying the quick, aggressive hands that won him multiple national titles. However, 19-year-old Johnson feels an advantage, believing he is being overlooked by his NoXcuses Boxing Gym teammates.

Pantoja, 1-1, 27, has never stopped being a professional – Johnson aims to change that.

“People underestimate me,” Johnson said. “It’s been like that since I was an amateur.”

He added that this underestimation increases his motivation in the gym. Johnson is determined to prove his worth not only to himself, but also to those who doubt him or, worse, don’t recognize him. “I never felt like I was recognized as that guy, so I feel like I’m underappreciated,” Johnson said of his amateur and now professional career.

Johnson sees the fight as a key step in his career, compared to feared forward David Benavidez by some teammates and touted by others as one of the most ready-to-fight prospects in the country.

“I train as much as I can,” Johnson said. “It’s about making a statement. The way you win shows people what you’re capable of, and I’m ready to show my best.

Continue Reading

Boxing

Benavidez Sr. wants Artur Beterbiev after David Morrell

Published

on

Image: Benavidez Sr. Wants Artur Beterbiev After David Morrell

David Benavidez’s father, Jose Benavidez Sr., says he wants undisputed lightweight heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev if he can defeat “regular” WBA champion David Morrell in a Jan. 25 fight.

Jose Senior believes Beterbiew would be a good fight for Benavidez (29-0, 24 KO). He would also like his son to have Dmitry Bivol because it would give him a chance to beat someone who beat Canelo Alvarez in 2022.

Jose Sr. is still bitter that Canelo chose not to fight Benavidez all these years, and recently mentioned a $200 million asking price to fight him. If Bivol loses the rematch with Beterbiev, it is not worth fighting him.

Artur Beterbiev (21-0, 20 KO) will be the guy Benavidez fights if he defeats Bivol in a rematch in 2025. The second fight is still not confirmed, but it is likely.

Benavidez’s worst nightmare would be if Beterbiev lost his rematch with Bivol and then the two fighters met in a trilogy fight. Benavidez will have to wait until the third fight between these fighters takes place before he can claim the belts.

“David’s next fight will be David Morrell. Everyone is very excited about it. We tried to make this fight for three years, but I think David Morrell needed a little more experience to show the world that he deserves this fight,” said Jose Benavidez Sr. Probox TV David Benavidez’s next fight with Cuban David Morrell will take place on January 25.

Of course, Team Benavidez hasn’t tried challenging to fight Morrell over the last three years because they’ve been the ones ignoring him. If they wanted a fight with Morrell, it would have happened a long time ago.

They waited until now, after Morrell’s unimpressive performance against Radivoje Kalajdzic on August 3 at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles, before deciding they wanted to fight him.

“David called him and said, ‘Hey, I want to do this fight. Let’s make it happen. It was done right away. I’m very excited to fight a newborn talent, a sturdy fighter, and I think it’s going to be a tough fight,” said Jose Senior on how the fight with Morrell ultimately came about.

I hope we get a chance to fight Beterbiev. He won only on Saturday. Hopefully we can achieve that, but right now our focus is on David Morrell. We have to look impressive to get to the next level,” Benavidez Sr. said.

If Benavidez loses to Morrell, Jose Sr. will have to decide which direction to take his son. Will he move it back to 168 pounds or stay at 175, hoping to win one of the belts after Beterbiev’s vacation?

Continue Reading
Advertisement

OUR NEWSLETTER

Subscribe Us To Receive Our Latest News Directly In Your Inbox!

We don’t spam! Read our privacy policy for more info.

Trending