Wladimir Gendlin: One must fight against Usyk in Golovkin style

Famous Russian commentator Wladimir Gendlin broke down the fight of Alexander Usyk vs Marco Huck. Usyk defeated Huck via TKO in the 10th round and went to the semi-finals of the World Boxing Super Series and defended his WBO title in the cruiserweight division. In the semi-finals the Ukrainian will meet with the winner of the pair Mairis Briedis (Latvia) vs Mike Perez (Cuba).

- Our impression is that Usyk dominated the whole fight and only two first rounds were equal.

- I agree. First, Usyk is fast. This is the main quality of any good boxer. He not only moves fast, but also thinks quickly. In combat he uses the situation in his favor as soon as the opportunity arises. And he doesn’t miss this opportunity. Secondly, he has classic skills. In addition he has a good psychological attitude, courage. In general he is an excellent fighter.

The only drawback, which all noted: he has no punch. And without a punch in this category it will be very hard when he gets to the top. This is a strong competition. In a literal and figurative sense. But maybe it's even good that he is not charged for the knockout. We have seen knockout artists already, and it ends when they were too sure that everything is decided. Usyk cannot be fooled by this. He's a good boxer. There’s nothing to add.

- How far was Marco Huck from his ideal conditions?

Honestly I don’t remember Huck very well. In the other days I saw him. But he never made a special impression on me. He is a strong middle class boxer on a scale from perfection to zero. He's a tough guy with a good punch, but compared to Usyk he looked very unconvincing. Firstly he was to slow and secondly he thought badly. Usyk deceived him as he wanted. The victory of Usyk was not unexpected.

- And before the fight did you expect that Usyk would defeat Hook so easily?

- No. I must admit that I have been distracted from boxing recently. I was in Kiev with my friends and they watched this fight so I watched it too.

- Do you understand what should be done against Usyk to neutralize his strong qualities? Sometimes it seems that he is invulnerable.

- Each boxer has weak points. It may not be easy to find against each enemy, but everyone has vulnerabilities. Usyk is fast and inventive. He is well aware of his position in the ring at any time. This speaks of his class as a boxer. But on the other side, if there’s an intelligent trainer or strategist, who could see how he reacts, let's say, under pressure...

- So…

- This trainer may try to use these options and choose the right one. A good boxer always does that. If I was in the corner of Usyk’s opponent I would try to do something in the style of Golovkin: constantly pressuring him. How will he react? If you cannot intercept his attacks and respond, then you need to take the initiative in your own hands. There's a lot that can be changed. But we are all good strategists when we look at the fight from the outside (smiles).