Oleksandr Usyk lifts lid on Anthony Joshua friendship and predicts Tyson Fury fight

Oleksandr Usyk has said he believes Anthony Joshua will beat Tyson Fury if the British heavyweights finally square off.

On Saturday, Fury ended his fifth retirement from boxing and eased past Arslanbek Makhmudov at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, where Joshua watched from the front row. However, “AJ” declined to enter the ring and face off with Fury.

Joshua suggested that negotiations are only in their early stages for his long-awaited showdown with Fury; furthermore, Joshua was injured in a car crash in December, which claimed the lives of two of his teammates.

Oleksandr Usyk at a press conference for his fight with Rico Verhoeven (AP)

Since then, Joshua has spent time training with Usyk – who holds two wins over the 36-year-old and two over Fury – in the unified champion’s native Ukraine.

“I looked at how Anthony is training, he’s a machine,” Usyk told The Independent and other publications on Tuesday. “But now I think Anthony needs help.

“We, people who support, we must say, ‘Yeah, we do believe,’ because a lot of people, you know...

“I’m a fan of the soccer team Dynamo [Kyiv], I’m a fan a lot of the time. Sometimes my team lose, but I don’t say: ‘You’re bad, you’re bad.’ I say: ‘Things happen, you must work.’ I pray. I say ‘it’s normal’, because it’s a sport.

“But sometimes people are negative. They’re not family, they’re bulls***. Listen, we must help each other. If we don’t help each other, we are not people, we are animals.”

Asked if he thinks Joshua would knock out Fury, 37, Usyk said: “I have no idea. I know he wins, but I don’t know.”

And of Fury’s performance against Makhmudov, Usyk said: “Listen, it’s not a good performance for me, but Tyson wins, [so] it’s good.

“It’s normal. Listen, I support Tyson Fury, you know? I get a lot of messages from my acquaintances and my friends: ‘Oh, your friend won.’ It’s good.

Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua exchanging words after Fury beat Arslanbek Makhmudov (Getty)

“[But] I’m nervous, because I watched only six rounds – the first six rounds, but then I went to church. I said: ‘Oh, be careful, hands up.’”

Addressing Joshua’s physical and mental state after December’s car crash, Usyk added: “I think yes, [he’s ready to fight,] but we need a little bit of time, because we know AJ has a problem with his body after the car crash. But yes, he can [fight].”

Usyk, 39, was speaking after the launch press conference for his next fight, a WBC title defence against Rico Verhoeven. Usyk will fsce the kickboxing icon at the pyramids of Giza on 23 May.