Tony Bellew has considered whether Oleksandr Usyk, who dealt him an eighth-round stoppage defeat in 2018, can be beaten by heavyweight prodigy Moses Itauma.
Having become a three-time, two-division undisputed champion, there is little more the Ukrainian can achieve to further cement his greatness in the sport.
He has, after all, beaten Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua and Daniel Dubois on two occasions, respectively, and therefore solidified himself as the greatest heavyweight of this era.
The only way he can go one step further, it seems, is by making his mark on the next generation, which many predict will be dominated by Itauma.
Having become the WBO’s leading challenger, awaiting his mandatory shot at the world title, the 21-year-old has already established himself as a formidable contender.
This much was evident during his fifth-round finish over Jermaine Franklin last month, when Itauma stormed past the typically durable customer in emphatic fashion.
But while the dynamic southpaw has expressed an interest in facing the heavyweight king, Usyk is understandably less eager to present him with this opportunity.
Instead, the 39-year-old is gearing up to face Dutch kickboxer Rico Verhoeven on May 23, defending his WBC world title at Egypt’s Pyramids of Giza.
Even if his next opponent happened to be Itauma, though, former world champion Bellew has told Seconds Out that he doubts Usyk would be defeated.
“He’s beaten everybody in front of him – there’s nothing more he can do.
“He’s entitled to what he’s doing in this next fight [against Verhoeven] and he’s earned the right to call the shots. He’s the boss.
“Absolutely nobody [will beat him].”
After experiencing the full force of Usyk’s brilliance, albeit in 2018, Bellew is perhaps better-placed than most to give an honest assessment of Itauma’s chances against the Olympic gold medallist.
