Oleksandr Usyk believes it is he who has 'got into Tyson Fury's head' ahead of their clash; Usyk, the WBO, WBA and IBF titlist, and WBC champion Fury fight for the undisputed heavyweight championship on February 17; Usyk insists: "It's not 'if' I win but 'when' I win"
Wednesday 27 December 2023 20:12, UK
The confidence of Oleksandr Usyk looks unshakeable.
Usyk was a brilliant undisputed cruiserweight champion and on February 17 against Tyson Fury he will attempt to unify all four of the major belts at heavyweight.
He has no doubt that he will be victorious.
"Firstly, it's not 'if' I win but 'when' I win," Usyk said.
"When I go to sleep I imagine myself boxing, then my hand raised high. I simply believe that I can win."
Usyk is a small heavyweight, but he beat Anthony Joshua twice and now holds the WBO, WBA and IBF championships.
He went head-to-head with towering WBC titlist Tyson Fury at their announcement press conference and it was Fury who tried barging into him, skull-first, at their face off.
"I got into his head and now instead of me, he thinks about a rabbit. Keep thinking, brother," Usyk said.
One of the insults that Fury likes to throw Usyk's way is calling him a "rabbit".
"I have listened to Eminem for many years, his mum used to call him a white rabbit. I don't know, I like this rapper," Usyk explained.
"Tony Bellew once said that I am a beast in boxing, I said: 'Not really, I'm just a white rabbit.'"
Usyk is inspired by the memory of his father, to become a two-weight undisputed champion but also in how he conducts himself.
"In my childhood I was asked who I want to be when I grow up, I came home and asked his advice - who should I become when I grow up? He said: 'You must become a good person,'" Usyk recalled.
"First of all - you need to become a good and well-behaved person. From there, you can achieve everything else."
