Commentator Tim Bradley got on his soapbox to lecture fans for labeling unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk (23-0, 12 KOs) as a “Time great” for victory over Tyson Fury (34-2-1, 24 KOs) last Saturday night in Riyadh.
The former two-division undisputed champion Usyk, 37, beat the former WBC champ Fury for the second time, making it look easy. Before Usyk defeated the ‘Gypsy King’ for the first time earlier this year on May 18th, fans had called the 6’9″ British fighter the ‘Best heavyweight on the planet.’
GOAT Status
Usyk has knocked him off that perch, making fans change their tune and saying he’s ‘washed up’ or ‘never as good in the first place.’ However, the 2012 Olympic gold medalist Oleksandr’s wins over these top fighters make a strong argument that he belongs among the all-time greats:
– Anthony Joshua
– Tyson Fury
– Daniel Dubois
– Mairis Briedis
– Murat Gassiev
– Marco Huck
– Michael Hunter
– Thabiso Mchunu
– Krzysztof Głowacki: *First career defeat
– Tony Bellew
“First of all, I’m not even going to talk about the fight right now, but all this ‘All time’ great s*** that’s going on. All Time great, are you kidding me?” said Tim Bradley on social media, reacting to the praise that Oleksandr Usyk has been receiving from fans for his win over Tyson Fury last Saturday night in Riyadh.
“Man, look. Recency bias. Just because he beat the two best heavyweights [Fury and Anthony Joshua] does not make him an all-time great,” continued Bradley with his downgrading of two-division undisputed champion Usyk.
“Usyk, he is NOT an all-time great. Y’all need to stop with that. He’s literally had seven fights. Give guys in the heavyweight division. I understand that he has accolades. He cleaned out the division at cruiserweight. I get that. Now, he comes to heavyweight. I wouldn’t say he cleaned out, but he beat the two best guys in the division,” said Bradley about Usyk’s wins over the two aging British heavyweights, Fury and Joshua.
Cleaning Out The Division
The victories for Usyk over Fury, Joshua, and Dubois means he’s cleaned out the heavyweight division. That, along with his accomplishments as a cruiserweight, makes him an all-time great and maybe the best of all time.
“Now, you’re saying he’s an ‘all-time great.’ Come on, man. Wow! Y’all need to stop it. He’s a legend in his own right, but an all-time great, y’all tripping,” said Bradley.
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