This month, Oleksandr Usyk made history in boxing by defeating Tyson Fury despite all the odds.
The undisputed heavyweight, however, made it quite evident that he intended to rule the division when he declared that he would prefer to face Anthony Joshua over Andy Ruiz Jr. in 2019—after all, you have to defeat the greatest to be the best.
Usyk was the required opponent at the time to fight the Mexican or the British fighter for the unified heavyweight championship in a rematch in Saudi Arabia.
In the ensuing match, Joshua—who was regarded as one of the world’s most dangerous heavyweights—was stopped in an incredible fight at Madison Square Garden in the summer of 2019 by the underdog Ruiz.
Tyson Fury claimed that during Oleksandr Usyk’s uncontested fight, he was “given gift.”
Joshua would exact revenge on the Mexican fighter by defeating him by unanimous decision in their rematch in Saudi Arabia. Tyson Fury’s father had been condemned by his own brother for his actions during the fight. But before the Britishman made up for his first loss of the fight, Usyk was asked to select between Ruiz and Joshua as his opponent.
The Ukrainian stated he wanted to challenge the British because he considered him as a bigger challenge, despite his lesser weight, height, and reach. Following Eddie Hearn, AJ’s promoter, recent remarks that the fighter might have a trilogy with Usyk, a closer examination of the Ukrainian’s initial remarks indicates that the undisputed champion would seize the opportunity to face Joshua once again.
Usyk was asked in a 2019 interview with Sky Sports if he would rather take on Ruiz or Joshua in combat. The gold medallist from the London 2012 Olympics retorted, “Anthony Joshua at Wembley. I believe that fighting Joshua would be far more difficult for me.”
The Ukrainian responded, “I was asked the question, ‘Who would I like to fight?'” in response to being reminded of his earlier remarks regarding his desire to face Deontay Wilder, Fury, and Joshua. Naturally, I listed the top three heavyweights in the classification today.
“You have to fight the best if you want to be the best. I wanted to face the best of the best, and these guys are the finest of today. I want to be at the top of the game if I’m going to be fighting the regular men in the queue with them.”
As the referee, Andy Ruiz Jr. hits Anthony Joshua. Luis Pabon makes motions at the Matchroom Boxing “Clash on the Dunes” show at the Diriyah Season on December 07, 2019 in Diriyah, Saudi Arabia, during the IBF, WBA, WBO, and IBO World Heavyweight Title Fight between Andy Ruiz Jr. and Anthony Joshua.
Usyk declared that he desired to battle Joshua for Ruiz.Â
Ruiz has defeated Chris Arreola and Luis Ortiz via unanimous decision since his defeat to Anthony Joshua. fight August 3, he takes fight Jarrell Miller in Los Angeles. The Mexican has already declared that he would “love” to face the Ukrainian in the future.
But Usyk, who defeated Tyson Fury in a split decision on May 18 to become the undisputed heavyweight champion, is destined to take on the Gipsy King once more in October, this time in Saudi Arabia. Unfortunately for the Ukrainian, Usyk appears certain to lose the vacant IBF heavyweight title, so the rematch will probably be for the unified heavyweight championship rather than the undisputed title.
For over two years, Filip Hrgovic has served as the mandatory IBF challenger. The Croatian fighter may be vying for the IBF gold in his next matchup with Daniel Dubois. For Usyk to remain unchallenged until his rematch with Fury, his side has asked for an exception.
On August 20, 2022, Oleksandr Usyk of Ukraine (R) and Anthony Joshua of Britain (L) engage in a heavyweight boxing rematch for the WBA, WBO, IBO, and IBF belts at the King Abdullah Sports City Arena in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Anthony Joshua was defeated twice by Usyk (Image: AFP via Getty Images)
In the meanwhile, Hearn stated that should their rematch not be possible, Joshua would be open to competing against Fury or going up against Usyk in a trilogy fight this year. Although it is still believed that Usyk and Fury will rematch in October, the Matchroom CEO expressed concern that the bout may be scheduled too soon for either boxer.
“I don’t believe Tyson Fury is going be over the moon with five or six weeks off, but that’s the duty, there’s a lot of money,” he said on Matchroom’s YouTube channel. Who knows? If Usyk is hurt and unable to attend the date, should Fury fight Joshua, with Usyk facing the victor? In other words, “Yes, please” is my response.
However, the fighters and His Excellency [Turki Al-Sheikh] are the ones who must make the final judgements. They have an agreed-upon rematch, but the next challenge will likely be ensuring they are physically fit for that date.”
