George Groves backs Usyk over Fury

Everyone in the world has an opinion on the upcoming undisputed heavyweight clash between Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury. The Gypsy King has long manicured a reputation as unbeatable, the archetypal heavyweight champion. While the Ukrainian “White Rabbit” has stealthily taken over the division, sweeping up all of the titles apart from the WBC, Fury and his followers say that it is only one title that really counts.

While there is a general feeling that the best Fury beats the best Usyk, former super middleweight champion George Groves has backed Usyk in the fight, saying that he is “just a lot better” than Fury.

In raw talent, Usyk is definitely levels above Fury, but the question has always revolved around size: Fury’s abundance of it and Usyk’s seeming lack at the heavyweight level.

Speaking to talkSport Boxing, Groves said, “Yeah, I picked Usyk to beat Fury. I remember when Usyk first moved up to heavyweight, I said, ‘He’s a dark horse. Don’t write this guy off. We’ve seen cruiserweight move up to heavyweight and dominate in previous years. It did seem a bit unfathomable for a lot of people that he’s never going to compete with Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury. I still think Usyk beats him.”

Groves continued, explaining, “The argument says, ‘A good big un beats a good little un, but I think Usyk is an exceptional fighter. In terms of their boxing ability, Usyk is a lot better.”

Many of Fury’s boxing deficiencies have traditionally been made up for by his size. He leans on fighters, grapples with them, throws rabbit punches, and generally fatigues his opponents into submission. But as he has aged, Fury has shied away from top level opposition, manicuring a perceived world-level reputation.

In his last three bouts, Fury has faced an ex-MMA champ in Francis Ngannou, a past-it contender in Dereck Chisora, and a second-tier heavyweight in Dillian Whyte. Now, Fury will face the consummate pugilist in Usyk, and for Groves at least, that will be a step too far.