Former cruiserweight world champion, Johnny Nelson, has hit back at Tyson Fury’s claims that he “got bashed” after stepping up to heavyweight, insisting that ‘The Gypsy King’ will have “points taken away from him” against Oleksandr Usyk in what he believes will be a controversial fight.
Fury and Usyk go head-to-head on Saturday, May 18 for the right to become the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world.
The fight is arguably the biggest boxing event of the year, but Nelson believes that fans are in store for a controversial ending to the bout.
“I think the fight is going to end in controversy, I think it’s written on the wall,” he told Dexerto on behalf of BetVictor.
“Tyson Fury has openly admitted, he acknowledged when he used the elbow with [Francis] Ngannou. We’ve seen Tyson Fury use the elbow, use a forearm, use whatever dark arts he can get away with in a fight.
“That’s what he’s instinctively used and that’s what, [Deontay] Wilder was complaining about it, they’ve all [his previous opponents] complained about it. He does it, he gets away with it.”
Nelson insisted that Usyk’s ability to put fighters under intense pressure will cause Fury to resort to the so-called “dark arts” of boxing.
“We can go all the way back in his career,” he continued. “We’ve seen that if he’s put under pressure by somebody that knows how to put him under pressure, as in, Usyk, who is very good at putting someone under pressure, making them work desperately at a pace that they don’t want to work – he will then revert back to type. That’s what will happen.
“Now, I use the example of Ricky Hatton against Floyd Mayweather. Ricky Hatton blamed the referee for not letting them just get on with the fight. The referee made him box clean because Mayweather and his team complained about him holding down and everything.
“If Usyk’s people know what they’re doing, they will go to the officials and referee, the judges and everybody, saying this is what he [Fury] does. Make sure he does the right thing.
“And if the referee and the judges do their job, then that’s what will happen and then Tyson’s going to have to box clean and it’s going to have to be skill against skill.
“And Tyson will only get to that point if the fight is getting uncomfortable for him, if he’s not happy with how it’s going, that’s when it becomes skill against skill.”
“So this is why I say this will be a controversial points win,” he continued. “I think both fighters are slippery enough and skilled enough to not get knocked out. Do they hit hard enough? Tyson does, he hits harder than Usyk, but it’s about skill.
“And so and with that kind of mindset I say there’s going to be a controversial ending to this fight. Tyson Fury may get the decision and not deserve it. Or Tyson Fury will not get the decision and think he deserved it. He’ll get points taken away from him – this is what I expect.”
Tyson Fury could “disappear” if he loses to Oleksandr Usyk
Whoever wins the fight will walk away as the first undisputed heavyweight world champion of the world since Lennox Lewis achieved the feat in 1999.
When asked what the outcome of the fight could mean for the division and the future of each fighter, Nelson made it clear that a loss for Fury could signal the end of The Gyspy King’s time in the ring.
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“If Tyson Fury loses badly,” he said. “It doesn’t matter what the promoters say, it doesn’t matter how much money they throw on the table, it doesn’t matter what his team has done, what anybody says – Tyson Fury will mentally not be able to get over getting beaten by this ‘short, jumped up, gapped teeth cruiserweight’.
“So he himself will struggle to deal with it. And that will hurt him, it’ll destroy him. Because you see what kind of fighter he is, you see he wears his heart on his sleeve. That’s who he is. And so they’ll try and spin it. They’ll try and dress it up.
“They have no control over Tyson fury. Tyson is the boss of all that squad. And so if he loses bad, don’t be surprised if Tyson fury walks away and he disappears, don’t be surprised.”
Tyson Fury: Johnny Nelson “got bashed” at heavyweight
Fury, never one to shy away from controversy, launched into a passionate rant on the history of heavyweight boxing and how size matters in the division.
The 35-year-old mentioned Nelson by name, claiming that the former cruiserweight “got “bashed” when he stepped up to heavyweight.
"Johnny Nelson got bashed!" 👀Tyson Fury says boxing has weight divisions for a reason 💬#FuryUsyk | Sky Sports Box Office | May 18 📌 pic.twitter.com/TKGfbBGlfn
— Sky Sports Boxing (@SkySportsBoxing) April 10, 2024
Nelson, although agreeing with Fury’s overall point, did not entirely see eye-to-eye with the WBC champion after finding out about the claims being made.
“I was actually on holiday in St Lucia and I got a few phone calls telling me that I got mentioned,” Nelson said. “Factually, Tyson Fury is a boxing historian. And I love that. But factually, he was actually wrong.
“I was the cruiserweight stepping up and fighting heavyweights and I didn’t get ‘bashed’ against every heavyweight I went in against.
“I won some obscure silly heavyweight title down in Australia. So I beat heavyweights. He never said anything I didn’t say myself.
“I said that a top cruiserweight can beat most heavyweights. It’s just the top heavyweights you can’t beat because you’re giving away far too much. Either weight, height, reach, power or something else. So top cruiserweights will beat most heavyweights until you get to the top.
“So he didn’t say anything I have not said myself, because I know that. If I could step up to heavyweight and be a fully-fledged heavyweight, I would have done.
“I was a cruiserweight king and I knew I was. I was the boss of my palace. As a world heavyweight champion, that wasn’t my palace.”
Fight week for Fury vs Usyk has already begun in controversial style. Tyson’s father, John Fury, headbutted a member of the Ukrainian’s team in a crowded hotel lobby on Monday, May 13.
Fury Sr was labeled a “clown” by former world boxing champion Carl Froch for his behavior.
For all the biggest results and upcoming fights this year, check out Dexerto’s 2024 boxing schedule.