Fury is enduring a tough time in training, Nelson says he’s heardCredit: Mikey Williams/Top Rank

Arguably the most important fight of his life, Fury is going into the contest in shaky form after his controversial split decision win against former UFC champion Francis Ngannou last October.

That victory should have acted as a wake-up call for the 35-year-old, but according to Nelson, the noises coming out of Fury’s training camp are less than convincing.

Speaking on talkBOXING with Spencer Oliver and Jonny Nelson, Nelson said: “I’m hearing rumours of what’s happening in camp – I’m hearing that he’s getting turned over in the gym.

“So this thing about appetite when he’s in the gym, I mean, he got shown his a***.

“I’m hearing these things and I’m thinking has he taken his eye off the ball, or has time caught up with him?

“In regards to his last fight, I put that down to him disrespecting the man in front of him and if you’re led to believe he had the best training camp, his legs had gone.

“I’d expect Tyson Fury to beat Oleksandr Usyk, but the Tyson Fury who boxed Ngannou in his last fight gets knocked out.

“If that Tyson Fury turns up then it’s done, it’s over.

Everything is on the line when Fury and Usyk meet in Saudi ArabiaCredit: Getty

“The reason why I said ‘the legs are gone’ line is that I remember Tony Bellew saying it about David Haye and at first I was like ‘what?’, but when I saw it I knew what he was talking about.

“I might be saying something that might not be too popular – I expect him to win, I just think he dropped the ball in the last fight.

“These rumours I’m hearing, I hope they’re just rumours set about by him.”

WBC heavyweight champion Fury boasts a record of 34-1-0 is seeking the WBA, WBO and IBF belts the Ukrainian currently holds.