Lennox Lewis incredibly insists Tyson Fury was ‘PLAYING’ when Oleksandr Usyk nearly knocked out the Gypsy King during their first clash
- Oleksandr Usyk came close to stopping Tyson Fury in the ninth round of their clash
- But Lennox Lewis claimed Fury had used the ring ropes to his advantage
Lennox Lewis has claimed Tyson Fury was ‘playing’ when Oleksandr Usyk came close to a stoppage with a barrage of punches ahead of the rematch between the two.
For the first time since Lewis himself unified the division more than two decades earlier, Fury and Usyk stepped into the ring in May to crown an undisputed heavyweight king.
Throughout the early evening in Riyadh, both fighters enjoyed their share of success, with Fury seemingly growing into the bout as it approached the middle rounds.
That all changed in the ninth, however, when a bloodied Fury began to absorb a flurry of punches from the Ukrainian.
Usyk landed a stiff left hand before raining down the punishment, landing fourteen unanswered punches in a row as his opponent bounced back from the ring ropes.
Fury was able to stay on his feet despite the attack, but referee Mark Nelson gave the British fighter an eight count, with the 10-8 round ultimately proving decisive as the fight went to the judges’ scorecards.
Lennox Lewis claimed Tyson Fury was ‘playing’ when Oleksandr Usyk almost finished him in their first fight
After a competitive opening, Usyk began to take control of the fight after the middle rounds
Usyk appeared to hurt Fury in the ninth but Lennox insisted the Brit used the ropes to his advantage
However, ahead of the highly anticipated rematch on December 21, Lewis insisted that Fury’s use of the ropes was actually an example of deft ringcraft.
“He got punched in the nose, causing him to fall back onto the ropes.” Lewis said Fight Hub TV. “He played bouncing off the ropes because he was using the ropes to keep him up.
“I thought the referee was great in that fight because some referees would have stopped it. That referee stayed focused, didn’t stop the fight and let them box.’
When recently asked how he plans to avenge his first career defeat as a professional, Fury claimed he had ‘messed around’ too much during the 12-round clash.
He said, ‘I’ll just throw more this time. Keep hitting him in the face more times than last time.
“I’m just going to box smart, box smart and if I catch him, get him out of there. Pretty similar to what I did last time. A little less clowning and a little more focus and that’s basically it.
“I’ve done more clowning than anyone in any high-level fight has ever done.
“It’s also taken my focus away, so maybe a little less clowning and more focus on the actual win. I was messing around too much there.”
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