Boxing
Oleksandr Usyk vows to beat Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury to become undisputed champion
Oleksandr Usyk made history by becoming the only undisputed cruiserweight champion in the four-belt era. After conquering the division, Usyk made his highly anticipated heavyweight debut in October, stopping late replacement Chazz Witherspoon. Only one fight into his tenure as a heavyweight, Usyk already has his sights on becoming the undisputed king of the heavyweight division.
Usyk's second contest at heavyweight is scheduled to take place on May 23 against Dereck Chisora, pending on what happens with the coronavirus pandemic. If the fight occurs and he emerges victorious, Usyk maintains his position as the WBO mandatory challenger and will likely face the winner of the scheduled June 20 fight between unified champion Anthony Joshua and Kubrat Pulev. Although the future of that fight is currently up in the air as well.
There's also another major heavyweight title clash set for later this year, as WBC and lineal titlist Tyson Fury will face Deontay Wilder for the third time. If things line up perfectly for Usyk, he'll beat Chisora, set his sights on Joshua and finally hunt down Fury to become the first fighter to become the undisputed champion as both a cruiserweight and heavyweight.
"I want to fight both (Fury and Joshua)," Usyk told Sky Sports on who he prefers to take the belts from.
Since he beat Murat Gassiev to become the undisputed cruiserweight champion in July 2018, Usyk has only fought twice due to injuries. When it comes to the heavyweight division, the names of Fury, Joshua, and Wilder roll off people's tongues. Usyk's name comes up in the second tier of competitors. The 33-year-old feels his name isn't mentioned among the big three because of not being able to compete regularly.
"I need to stay active," Usyk said. "I need to box. If your vocation is passive, it's not good. If you stay active, it's very good. This is my active vocation."
