Via Jake Tiernan: Joe Joyce said that he “measure” Tyson Fury on a scouting mission during his final fight with Derek Chisora on December 3.
Joyce (15-0, 14 KOs) could be next after WBC heavyweight champion Fury faces IBF, WBA & WBO champion Oleksandr Usyk in April. If Fury wins that fight, Joyce, the WBO interim champion, will be next unless Tyson decides to drop that belt to avoid him.
The WBA complicated things by ordering Usyk to defend against their ‘regular’ champion Daniel Dubois.
It’s unclear if Fury will hit that fight first or go for what’s said to be a tougher fight with Joyce, who could be the most challenging opponent of his career.
“I rated him, but he knows who he is fighting; he is fighting with Chisora. He knew what level Chisora was at, so he prepared himself accordingly,” Joe Joyce told Queensbury when asked if he sees Tyson Fury’s weakness in his recent win over Derek Chisora on December 3.
“Now he will fight me, so he will prepare himself accordingly. When he picks up the pace and hits his shots, you think, ‘Where did he hit me from?’” Joyce said of Fury.
“He is tall, he has a very good range, he is fast and can shoot on target. Now he has shown that he can hit, too. It will be an uphill fight and will go to the following rounds. It will be a dramatic affair.
“Sure,” Joyce said when asked if Fury had improved since fighting him years ago. “Over there [at Big Bear], Fury is basically just weight loss. It was a competitive drill and Guido was involved. There is a red mark on Fury’s forehead due to Guido’s connection to a right hand. So they also have good shots.
“That’s when Fury became conscious of losing weight because at one point he was massive. Then I fought him, and he had a hard time hitting the rope. I can’t hit him on the rope. Apparently, I took pi**. He’s on a head-moving rope, and I can’t really hit him. That was obviously when I first started playing professional games, and I’ve learned a lot since then,” Joyce said.
