Carl Froch believes Oleksandr Usyk played a trick on Anthony Joshua during his second fight at heavyweight against Derek Chisora. The former super-middleweight world champion thinks Usyk deliberately took his foot off the gas to lure the Watford powerhouse into a false sense of security – and there could be more he is withholding from Tyson Fury.
Usyk vs Chisora was a competitive fight with Del Boy managing to snatch some of the early rounds thanks to his relentless pressure. However, as the fight went on Usyk came into his own and finished strong down the home straight to take the unanimous decision victory.
Much like many of his early fights at cruiserweight, the Ukrainian took some time to get going and Froch claims this may have been a way of masking his true potential from Joshua who was expected to box the winner.
Speaking during a recent video uploaded to his YouTube channel, ‘Froch on Fighting’, he said: “I’ve got a theory actually about the Chisora fight. I was there that night at ringside watching and learning [about] the guy, thinking is he big enough, is he good enough, is he strong enough? Okay, he’s not got that punch power, but he’s got an unbelievable skillset. So technically proficient, it’s amazing.”
“I think that night against Chisora, he just took his time. He was playing mind games with the opponents. He knew Anthony Joshua was watching that, and he was thinking to himself ‘if I show all my toolbox in this first heavyweight fight, I’m gonna scare him off.’
“So I think he never got out of second gear with Chisora. I’m not taking anything away from Chisora. He’ll go in there with anyone. He’s lost more than he’s won at world title level but he’ll give them a hard fight, and he certainly gave Usyk a hard fight.
“But I think Usyk took his time, just used his jab, moved around, certainly didn’t get past third gear, got the comfortable win on points. I think AJ would’ve looked at that and thought ‘I can beat this guy, he’s struggling up at heavyweight.’”
Usyk went on to beat Joshua twice and is now expected to box Fury on April 29 at London’s Wembley Stadium. Negotiations are still ongoing with both parties struggling to come to terms on the financial side of the deal.
Usyk’s manager Egis Klimas recently revealed that they are seeking British counsel to assist in discussions as the final deadline looms closer.