The famous Oleksandr Oleksandrovych Usyk is a Ukrainian professional boxer. He is a world champion in two weight classes, having held the unified WBA, IBF, WBO, and IBO heavyweight titles since defeating Anthony.
As an amateur, Usyk won gold medals at the 2011 World Championships and 2012 Olympics, both in the heavyweight division. He turned professional in 2013 and won the undisputed cruiserweight championship in his 15th professional fight in 2018. Three of his titles were won during the inaugural World Boxing Super Series, in which he won the Muhammad Ali Trophy, as well as The Ring magazine and lineal cruiserweight titles. For his achievements, Usyk was named the 2018 Fighter of the Year by Sports Illustrated, ESPN, The Ring, and the Boxing Writers Association of America (BWAA).
In 2018 Usyk became the fourth male boxer in history to simultaneously hold the WBA, WBC, IBF, and WBO titles, after Jermain Taylor, Bernard Hopkins, and Terence Crawford. He was the first Ukrainian undisputed champion. He is particularly notable for the speed of his accomplishments, winning his first world title in his tenth fight, and becoming the undisputed champion of his weight class by his fifteenth fight. Usyk vacated his cruiserweight titles in 2019 to move up to heavyweight. By that point, in sixteen fights he had defeated five current or former world champions.
What is Oleksandr Usyk’s next fight after Anthony Joshua?
Anthony Joshua and Oleksandr Usyk will share the ring again this month, as the heavyweights go head to head with the WBA, WBO, IBF, and IBO titles on the line in Saudi Arabia.
The pair’s rematch comes 11 months after their initial clash, which saw Usyk comprehensively outpoint Joshua in the Briton’s backyard, taking the belts from “AJ” at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London.
Now Joshua, 32, will seek to regain the titles for the second time in his career as he faces the unbeaten Ukrainian in Jeddah. In 2019, Joshua lost the belts to Andy Ruiz Jr at New York City’s Madison Square Garden with a stoppage defeat, before avenging that result with a decision win against the Mexican-American in Saudi Arabia at the end of that year.
Most fans hope the winner of this weekend’s rematch will take on WBC title holder Tyson Fury to crown an undisputed heavyweight champion. However, there is no deal in place for such a fight as things stand.
Briton Fury last fought in April, knocking out compatriot Dillian Whyte to remain unbeaten and retain the WBC belt, and he has since claimed to be retired. The “Gypsy King” has, however, gone back and forth on the matter, and there is a belief from his promoters that Fury will not be able to resist the prospect of a clash with the victor of Joshua vs Usyk 2.
There is always the possibility, though, that Fury commits to retirement and relinquishes his title, or that a mandatory challenger for one of the belts is given priority. Daniel Dubois is the WBA champion’s mandatory challenger and could be the likeliest opponent for the Joshua-Usyk 2 winner if an undisputed-title fight with Fury cannot be made.
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