WBA/IBF/WBO heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk very much wants to fight Tyson Fury, to become undisputed heavyweight king, and the fight could happen next year some time. But who knows with Fury (who announced today that the announcement of his next fight, to be on December 3, will come “this week”)? Usyk has been looking at other options for in case Fury fails to face him.
And Usyk has some interesting ideas. Speaking with Parimatch, the undefeated southpaw said he is even thinking about dropping back down to cruiserweight, where Usyk made history by becoming the first man to unify the titles in the four-belt era. Usyk says he doesn’t mind fighting “giants,” it’s just that in order to do so, he “must eat a lot.”
“I was thinking about returning to cruiserweight and getting a few more of the world belts,” Usyk said. “You know, being a heavyweight means you have to be really heavy. You must eat a lot. It’s not hard to fight with these giants, but it’s really hard to eat all the time. And now I work much more than I did as a cruiserweight, particularly in the training camps. I had to swim ten kilometres and train hard. At this moment I just want to stop and take a rest. A half of a year of training is hard work. I didn’t see my family for such a long time.”
Usyk really is one of the best conditioned fighters around today, if not of the last 20 years or so. We have never really seen Usyk tired in a fight, his engine being almost freakish. It would be a shame if Usyk dropped back down to cruiserweight, to cover old ground as it were. Yet if Fury isn’t willing to play ball, what else can Usyk do? Yes, he could stick around at heavyweight and fight the likes of Deontay Wilder, or Joe Joyce, or one or two other guys, but it may come down to what motivates the 35 year old.
And there are fresh challenges at 200 pounds right now. Since Usyk made the move up to heavyweight, guys like Lawrence Okolie, Jai Opetaia and Ilunga Makabu have won belts at cruiserweight. Maybe Usyk, if he cannot get the big one with Fury, will drop back down to the weight class that he finds more comfortable? If this proves to be the case, however, you can expect one thing – Fury accusing Usyk of ducking him! I think we know by now, though, that Usyk is not the kind of fighter to duck anyone, or any challenge. Can Usyk become a two-time undisputed cruiserweight king?