The Ukrainian – an undisputed champion at cruiserweight and heavyweight – turned 38 last month and has now finally revealed when he will call it a day
Oleksandr Usyk has revealed he has just two more fights left before retiring and has named either Joseph Parker or Daniel Dubois as his next opponent.
The Ukrainian kept his record intact back in December after toppling Tyson Fury for a second time. Despite being on the backfoot in the earlier rounds, Usyk regained some composure in the middle of the heavyweight dust-up and was eventually able to control proceedings for the rest of the bout.
After turning 38 last month, it’s fair to say that Usyk doesn’t have long left in the sport. The Ukrainian himself has now revealed that he intends to call it a day towards the back end of 2026. ‘The Cat’ has also stated that he will fight to more times, with the winner of Dubois’ clash with Parker seemingly next in what could be for the undisputed heavyweight titles.
In an interview with Sky Sports, Usyk – an undisputed champion at both heavyweight and cruiserweight – said: “I will fight who will win, Joseph Parker, Daniel Dubois, no problem. I think two years, one and a half [left in boxing]. I feel great myself. I feel I have two fights to prepare [for], not more. Just two.”
Dubois will be hoping to share the ring with Usyk once again given how their first encounter went. The heavyweight stars went head-to-head nearly two years ago – with the Ukrainian going on to stop ‘Triple D’ towards the back end of the fight. However, the main talking point came in the fifth round when the Brit landed a shot that sent Usyk crashing to the canvas. That said, it was later awarded as a low blow, much to the anger of Dubois.
The British star was ringside for Usyk’s recent win over Fury back in December. The 27-year-old was labelled ’embarrassing’ after confronting the Ukrainian in the ring just moments after he got his hand raised. Dubois placed himself opposite the Ukrainian and delivered both a challenge and congratulations in a slightly awkward exchange. “I want my revenge,” said Dubois after taking the microphone from the interviewer. “I want my revenge Usyk! Well done tonight, well done. God bless. I want my revenge for the robbery last time. Let’s go, let’s go. Make it happen Frank!”
Usyk quickly asserted he was open to a rematch. He replied: “Your excellency, make the fight with Daniel Dubois. Thank you so much. I can do more. I’m ready to fight (Dubois), no problem. Next fight no problem. Now I want to go home and rest.” With a potential sequel on the table, many within the sport are already predicting how it might play out.
In a chat with Mirror Fighting on behalf of casino.org, former heavyweight star David Price is backing Usyk to reign supreme once again. “A main talking point from the first fight was the low-blow. You forget the fact that Usyk won the fight by stoppage, and that was because he kept landing clean punch after clean punch. That’s a lot of adjustments to make when you’re fighting someone as good as Usyk,” he said.
“It’s not like you’re fighting someone who just had one good night and you had a bad night. You’re fighting someone who consistently performs at a high level, and is accurate almost every time. It will be difficult for Dubois to make any adjustments that change the outcome of the fight. Maybe he might try and take him the 12 rounds next time, but I think it’s going to be a big ask for Dubois. He definitely will do better than he did in the first fight. I think he’ll improve on it, but I would still expect him to come up short.”