Former world champion makes bold Tyson Fury claim ahead of Oleksandr Usyk showdown

Former Super-middleweight champion George Groves predicts Tyson Fury will lose in his scheduled heavyweight bout with Oleksandr Usyk - questioning whether the event will actually go ahead.

Groves, who retired in January 2019, believes that the Gypsy King's lacklustre preparation and cast doubts over the 35-year-old's intentions to fight the undefeated Ukrainian.

Next weekend will see Fury take on former UFC heavyweight champion, Francis Ngannou, in Saudi Arabia having defeated Derek Chisora in December to extend his unbeaten record to 33 wins and one draw.

But speaking to Grosvenor Casinos, Groves believes that the timing of Fury's fight with Usyk is only building more excitement around his upcoming fight with the former UFC star.

“They've announced Usyk-Fury but whether it's actually properly done or not, who knows?

"They haven't announced a date, they haven't done a press conference for it. I might be sceptical that it happens at all to be honest, just a little bit sceptical - I think the timing of the announcement is interesting.

"It builds a lot of excitement and a lot of headlines for Fury’s fight within Ngannou, so that makes sense why they would announce it now.

“I think it's a possibility that it may be a hoax. I’m not saying it’s definitive because Usyk has announced it as well, so I don’t doubt that something’s been signed, but the timing of it is interesting.”

Usyk last fought in August earlier this year, beating Daniel Dubois via knockout in the ninth round, retaining his WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, IBO, and The Ring heavyweight titles.

Having taken several British scalps that include Derek Chisora, Tony Bellew and Anthony Joshua, Groves predicts that the Ukrainian will add another to his list when the pair