Tyson Fury is less than two weeks away from his eagerly awaited rematch with bona fide heavyweight king Oleksandr Usyk in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The pair squared off for the undisputed crown back in May, when Usyk edged a split decision after scoring a ninth-round standing count against his opponent.
It was during the championship rounds, in fact, when Tyson Fury found himself in desperate need of some clear and considered advice from his corner.
However, team Fury – consisting of head coach SugarHill Steward, assistant trainer Andy Lee and his father, John Fury – ultimately came under heavy criticism following Oleksandr Usyk’s victory.
Johnny Nelson believes that Tyson Fury’s corner was not to blame for Oleksandr Usyk defeat
As ‘The Gypsy King’ gears up for his second encounter with the formidable Ukrainian on December 21, his training set-up is expected to undergo several changes.
For starters, the 36-year-old has been sparring with the likes of WBC bridgerweight titlist Kevin Lerena and Zhan Kossobutskiy, hoping that they will emulate his opponent’s dynamic style.
And this, if anything, should improve his preparation tenfold, given that his sparring for the last Usyk camp was hampered by a nasty cut above his right eye.
At the same time, though, former world middleweight champion Lee has insisted that there will be less voices in the corner come fight night.
This, one would assume, is in response to the criticism over John Fury’s corner work in May, when the outspoken Brit’s voice largely silenced the instructions from Steward and Lee.
And yet, former world cruiserweight champion and Sky Sports pundit Johnny Nelson claims that Fury would have been more than familiar with his father’s antics.
“Oleksandr Usyk’s got the blueprint to beat Tyson Fury,” Nelson wrote in his Sky Sports column. “You can’t blame the corner.
“[Boxing fans] were all making noise about all the voices in Tyson’s corner. I don’t think it made any difference.
“I remember sparring with Tyson at the back end of my career and his dad was ringside, shouting and screaming at him and Tyson stopped in the ring and turned to his dad and said: ‘You get in the ring and spar with him.’ And they’re arguing. Tyson’s used to that.”
What changes does Tyson Fury need to make ahead of Oleksandr Usyk rematch?
Usyk is, in many ways, an impossible puzzle to solve, with the unbeaten southpaw always finding a way to disrupt his opponents’ rhythm.
One thing that Fury has in his favor, however, is a flawless record when it comes to professional rematches.
Not only that, but the Brit’s size advantage should allow him to utilize his physical prowess against the former undisputed cruiserweight king.
And so, regardless of the voices in his corner, Fury will need to somehow match Usyk’s focus – sticking to his gameplan – for the duration of their showdown.