Will 2023 be the year that provides closure on the current generation of the world heavyweight division?

If you were to go back five years, you would recall a time when the consensus was that the current contenders in the heavyweight boxing division were the best of any generation and that fans were likely to witness some of the most iconic matches to ever take place in the sport over the coming years.

This rationale was driven on by the fact that Tyson Fury had just made an unlikely comeback and earned a spirited draw against Deontay Wilder which had blown the door wide open on who might end up as the king of a division that, as touched on, could be the most competitive of all time. Indeed, Fury’s triumphant return at the Staples Centre in Los Angeles on December 1st, 2018 meant a future of breathtaking possibility awaited and had fans dreaming about what they might see.

Fast forward to the present day and the reality, perhaps, has been somewhat different from what the expectations were. At least, this is a division that has become notorious for the biggest names being unable to put pen to paper on the fights that fans wanted to watch which has, in some cases, put paid to the blockbusters showdowns everyone was desperate to see all those years ago. 

Regrettably, time, as we know, waits for no professional athlete, and with 2023 now underway, there is a growing possibility that this might be the year where the curtain comes down on the current generation. Indeed, with the division’s main protagonists all in their mid to late thirties, this is surely the last dance for them.

Encouragingly, this does present one final opportunity for the main contenders to stake their claim as the greatest of their generation which should ensure that fans are treated to twelve months of all-or-nothing boxing. So, what is likely to happen and who could end up putting it all on the line in 2023?

Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk 

Without a doubt, Fury’s undisputed heavyweight title showdown against Oleksandr Usyk will be the most anticipated fight of the year given that it is the bout that presents the most jeopardy. Put another way, someone is probably going to lose their undefeated record which is always a narrative that captures the attention of the watching world. As things stand, Fury boasts a career record of 34 fights with 33 wins and one draw while Usyk impressively holds a 100 percent record that reads 20 fights and 20 wins. You can, all of a sudden, understand why out of all the upcoming boxing events in 2023, this one is garnering the most interest from across the globe. Fury does, of course, go into the early March bout as the heavy favorite at odds of -210 owing to his superior height and reach advantage. Notably, the Englishman stands at 6’ 9’’ which is considerably taller than Usyk at 6’ 3’’.

Having said that, the Ukrainian’s loyal fans will eagerly remind anyone who predicts an easy win for Fury that 6’ 3’’ was Muhammad Ali’s height. In their defense, it would naturally be unwise to write Usyk off given his astonishing technical ability as well as his outstanding intellect in the ring. Unfortunately for the Ukrainian, Fury is one of the most skilled operators to have ever stepped foot in a boxing ring and can adjust his style mid-way through a fight in order to combat the strategy that his opponent may be adopting. This method is ultimately why Fury should have too much for a determined Usyk.

So, what does a potential Fury win mean for his legacy in the division? As briefly alluded to, this is a fight for the undisputed heavyweight crown which speaks for itself in the sense that whoever wins it will be the rightful king of the weight class. Should Fury prevail, which is very much the prediction, then there wouldn’t be anyone left for him to beat. Admittedly, Anthony Joshua fans may take exception when reading this but after losing three times in as many years, does the Watford-born boxer have a legitimate claim to the heavyweight title, and perhaps more significantly, does Fury have to fight him in order to prove his superiority? 

Will 2023 serve as Anthony Joshua’s last chance saloon?

It wouldn’t be unjust to conclude that the last few years of Joshua’s career have not gone according to plan. Indeed, a shock loss to Andy Ruiz Jr at Madison Square Garden in 2019 was the start of the decline for Joshua who would again come unstuck in September 2021, this time against Usyk in London. A courageous performance from Joshua in Saudi Arabia during the rematch in August 2022 wouldn’t, however, be enough to convince the ringside judges who again awarded Usyk the victory, this time by way of a split decision. It was this loss in the port city of Jeddah that for all intents and purposes saw the ship sail on Joshua’s hopes of a world title fight with Fury.

It should be pointed out that Joshua and his team had ample opportunity to arrange a showdown with Fury following Joshua’s rematch with Ruiz when the Englishman was able to successfully win back the belts he lost in New York in June 2019, but for one reason or another, an agreement couldn’t be reached.

Does Joshua regret the fact that he let this chance pass him by or does he know deep down after observing Fury’s swashbuckling performances over the last five years that he would have, in all likelihood, lost to him? You’re always on a slippery slope when dabbling in hypotheticals of this nature, but at the same time, the fact remains that the majority of global boxing fans no longer feel that Fury needs to fight Joshua in order to secure his legacy. Realistically, the only chance Joshua would have in convincing the world that this is a fight that needs to happen would be to use 2023 to deliver a string of barnstorming displays that puts his name back into the hat.

How will 2023 end?

The logical conclusion would be that Fury beats Usyk and then retires having won the undisputed heavyweight championship of the world. Furthermore, the Englishman will be 35 in August and with lucrative offers from the WWE on the table, it doesn’t make much sense for Fury to continue to put his body on the line and risk his long-term health in the most brutal weight division in the industry by fighting into his late thirties when there is relatively easy money to be made without the attached danger.

In many respects and with this being the case, the onus is on those who want to take Fury’s crown in the sense that they have to do enough in the ring over the next twelve months to ensure that he feels he has to fight on to avoid conversations that question who the greatest of his era really was.

So, will one of the old guard make a final charge for eternal glory or will one of the young pretenders make a last-gasp effort to fight the man that up until now no one has been able to beat? All will be revealed in 2023 as the current generation of heavyweight fighters get set to make their final bow.