After Tyson Fury’s loss to Oleksandr Usyk in May, some in the boxing world wondered whether, at the age of 36, his best days were behind him.

Fury was badly weakened after losing a split decision to Usyk in their fight for the undisputed heavyweight championship in Saudi Arabia in May, the first blemish on his 36-fight record.

Former heavyweight champion Hasim Rahman added his two cents – but it doesn’t bode well for fans of “The Gypsy King”.

I’m talking to Fight the noiseRahman even went as far as to describe Fury as a “shell of himself” because of him exhausting trilogy with Deontay Wilder.

“The Rock” added that he believes Usyk will actually go one better and stop the Briton when he defeats him again on December 21.

“I think Deontay Wilder played an critical role in the Usyk and Tyson Fury rematch.

“I believe that Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury gave their all.

“I think they are both shells of themselves and I believe Usyk will win this rematch by stoppage.

“I know he knows he can get thrown and hurt, but I think there’s confidence in him now. I think he will win by stoppage.”

Fury, in the eyes of most, is weaker than his second fight with the Ukrainian, but Rahman knows better than anyone that overcoming all adversities is not impossible.

#OnThisDay In 2001, Hasim Rahman defeated Lennox Lewis by KO in round 5 of 12 to win the WBC, IBF and Lineal heavyweight titles. pic.twitter.com/qbkiLuWvmJ

— _hookoffthejab_ (@_hookoffthejab_) April 22, 2022

The Baltimore fighter scored one of the biggest upsets in the history of the heavyweight division when he knocked out Lennox Lewis in 2001, with bookmaker odds rated him at around 20-1.

Although most observers agree with the verdict of the three ringside judges that night, Fury maintains he should have gotten the nod for Usyk and has stated that he intends to stop him when they decide the fight on Saturday in about 11 weeks’ time.

Anthony Joshua appears to have come to terms with the fact that his boxing career may be over after a complete loss to Daniel Dubois. The 34-year-old was demolished by his rival in five rounds in front of 96,000 spectators at Wembley last month.

Joshua was painted on the canvas many times during a one-sided fight at the national stadium.

His evening ended once and for all after a counterattack by Dubois to defend his IBF heavyweight title.

Immediately after the fight, questions began to arise about Joshua’s future in sports.

His promoter Eddie Hearn gave fans an insight into Joshua’s mood as he spoke to Charlie Parsons on the show A place of stomping podcast.

“I told AJ on the phone, ‘You probably have one to three fights left.’ Then it died down a little bit,” Hearn explained. “He kind of realized, ‘Oh shit, we’re on a straight line. It really is.”

The British Boxing Board of Control handed Joshua a 28-day suspension following his knockout against Dubois. However, Hearn clarified after the fight that the Watford-born star would be aiming for a rematch with his conqueror.

“I think he will exercise the rematch clause, I think that’s obvious,” the Matchroom boss said. “He’s going to need a rest and it’s a threatening fight, this guy is still gaining confidence. He will believe he can hurt Dubois, he will believe he can beat him. But full respect for Daniel Dubois, he deserves it, it was a great performance.

During the post-fight press conference, Hearn added: “We have another fight with Riyadh Season and Turki Alalshikh, and Daniel Dubois is part of that plan, but it could very well be Tyson Fury or another heavyweight.

“I think 2025 will be an fascinating year for Anthony Joshua in every way, but he’ll definitely be back and whether it’s against Daniel Dubois, Tyson Fury, whoever, you’ll have a good time.”

Meanwhile, Joshua was asked about his future after the defeat. He explained: “You’re probably asking, ‘Do I still want to keep fighting?’ Of course I want to keep fighting.

“We must also pay tribute to our opponent, Daniel. Congratulations to him and his team. I also thank my team for the way they prepared for me. There were a few mistakes, but that’s the game. Low margins can cost you top dollar.

Legendary boxing promoter Bob Arum has proposed another opponent for Anthony Joshua, but warned that at the highest level “this is the end for him” after an embarrassing defeat at the hands of Daniel Dubois.

The 34-year-old was punched to the floor three times before being knocked out in the fifth round at Wembley, handing Joshua the fourth defeat of his career after back-to-back defeats to Andy Ruiz Jr and Oleksandr Usyk.

Joshua was banned from boxing for 28 days after his stoppage defeat, which is standard practice in the sport, with much speculation over who the Briton might face next.

A blockbuster clash with Tyson Fury was likely to hinge on Dubois beating, with promoter Eddie Hearn claiming a rematch clause could be triggered to face Dubois a second time, although this idea has been rejected elsewhere.

Joshua has rejected suggestions he could retire from boxing, while Arum, 92, believes there is another Briton he could face after losing his long-awaited confrontation with Dubois.

Rejecting the notion that Joshua’s defeat was a one-time event for the two-time heavyweight champion, Arum said Fighting Hub TV: “You don’t have an evening off to be kicked out like this. I just think AJ has been through a lot of wars. I think it’s over for both him and (Deontay) Wilder. Maybe they could fight each other, that would be good.

Wilder has lost four of his last five fights, the last coming in June against Zhilei Zhang in Saudi Arabia, and has also lost to Joseph Parker and twice to Fury on either side of a victory over Robert Helenius.

His career is on the line, but most importantly, it’s not over yet. It wasn’t until December that he was promised a fight with Joshua if he defeated Parker.

He lost by unanimous decision and faced Zhang, who had defeated the former WBC heavyweight champion, but Arum believes a clash with Joshua would be very appropriate at this stage of their careers.

Matchroom Sport chairman Hearn did not rule out the possibility, despite the promoter insisting a rematch with Dubois was the “number one priority”.

“I told him (Joshua) yesterday: who knows, you have maybe one to three fights left,” Hearn said. Boxing news. “When I told him that, the phone went hushed, but it was the realization of where we were in his career. These will simply be the biggest fights possible.

“I don’t rule out Wilder or (Joe) Joyce, but I think AJ will want the biggest one. He is a warrior. His number one priority is a rematch with Daniel Dubois.”