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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Harry Davies

Tyson Fury's dad ranks Oleksandr Usyk as third best heavyweight in the world

Tyson Fury 's dad John has ranked his son and Deontay Wilder above Oleksandr Usyk in his list of the best heavyweights in the world.

Fury's list comes after Usyk extended his unbeaten run to 20 fights by making the first defence of his heavyweight titles against Anthony Joshua in their rematch on Saturday night. The sequel was a repeat of the pair's first meeting last September as Usyk outclassed 'AJ' over 12 rounds to win a decision, with one judge bizarrely scoring the fight for Joshua.

Usyk has called for Fury to come out of retirement and face him for the undisputed belts. Fury Snr has ranked the Ukrainian as the third best heavyweight in the world whilst giving his opinion on how Usyk can be beaten. "My son is at another level, he is number one in the world. The second is Wilder, the third Usyk and the fourth Joshua. The only way to beat the Ukrainian is by putting pressure on him and not letting him think, he's a talented guy," Fury Sr said whilst speaking at his son's After Life tour in Mallorca.

Should Tyson Fury end his retirement to fight Oleksandr Usyk? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below

Fury is yet to vacate his WBC title but will need to make a decision about his retirement by this Friday. Usyk doesn't think Fury will stay retired and insists he will not fight again unless it's against the Brit, stating: "I am sure that Tyson Fury is not retired yet. I am convinced he wants to fight me. I want to fight him and if I am not fighting Tyson Fury, I am not fighting at all."

Oleksandr Usyk will not fight again unless it's against Tyson Fury (Action Images via Reuters)

A fight between Fury and Usyk would mark the first undisputed heavyweight title clash since Lennox Lewis beat Evander Holyfield in 1999. Whilst reacting to Usyk's latest win, Fury promised to hand the Ukrainian his first loss if they meet in the ring whilst adding it will take a big payday for him to break his retirement promise.

"I've just seen Joshua lose for the second time to Usyk, [he was] out of his depth." Fury said in a now-deleted video. "England has been relieved of its belts but there is a remedy and solution that I can suggest. If you want those belts back then send in the Gyspy barbarian. I will relieve the Ukrainian dosser of his belts like I did the last Ukrainian dosser. I's not going to be cheap, if you want the best you have to pay. It's going to be very expensive; so get your chequebook out and I will relieve the Ukrainian dosser of the belts."

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