Oleksandr Usyk and Anthony Joshua have become close friends over the last 12 months, but now that ‘AJ’ has left Team Usyk, the Ukrainian has updated his prediction for Joshua’s upcoming showdown with Tyson Fury.
Joshua left trainer Ben Davison after an unsuccessful bid for Daniel Dubois’ IBF heavyweight world title back in 2024 and made an intriguing switch to partner up with the coaches of former opponent, Usyk, with Iegor Golub acting as his lead cornerman.
Since then, Joshua has fought twice and won by knockout on both occasions, first halting Jake Paul last December before a more recognised returned to the heavyweight division in July – an uneasy two-round shootout with Albania’s Kristian Prenga.
When asked of his thoughts on a mooted matchup between Joshua and Fury earlier this year, Usyk predicted that Joshua would come out on top and go on to become the undisputed heavyweight world champion.
However, now that Joshua has made the decision to return to Davison, Usyk’s opinion appears to have changed, as he told DAZN Boxing that he sees that clash as a ’50/50’.
“It is a good fight, it is a 50/50. A lot of fans have waited for the fight for 10 years because it is two big stars in the UK and a lot of fans around the world want this fight, me [I] too want this fight!
“I want to watch this fight because it’s like a choice of who is the only king of the UK.”
Fury-Joshua takes place on Friday, December 11, at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, where the victor will reportedly become the new WBA (Super) heavyweight champion of the world.
