Former undisputed world heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis has weighed in on whether or not Oleksandr Usyk would have kept his undefeated record back in his day.
After dominating the cruiserweight division, Usyk has astonishingly bettered those achievements at heavyweight; twice defeating each of Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury and Daniel Dubois to become a two-time undisputed champion.
As a result, the Ukrainian has established himself as the standout heavyweight of this generation and entered the conversation as one of the greatest of all time, with many fans believing that he would have succeeded in any era.
The biggest name in boxing’s blue ribbon division during the late eighties and early nineties was Mike Tyson. During his prime, Tyson was the most ferocious boxer on the planet, having become the youngest world heavyweight champion in history at the age of just 20 – a record that still stands to this day.
Speaking with Mail Sport Boxing, Lewis predicted a host of fantasy fights and declared without hesitation that ‘Iron Mike’ would have gotten the better of the likes of Joe Frazier, Wladimir Klitschko and Tyson Fury in his prime.
When it came to Usyk, ‘The Lion’ paused and pondered more carefully for a moment, before declaring that Tyson would have overcome the reigning champion too.
Whilst Usyk may lack the competition to prove Lewis wrong, the 38-year-old southpaw could still add to his legacy after revealing plans to fight until he reaches 41 years old and then open a boxing academy.
At present, Fabio Wardey appears to be the frontrunner to be Usyk’s next opponent, with Germany’s WBC interim champion Agit Kabayel also in the frame, presuming he comes through Damian Knyba unscathed in January.