Prior to agreeing after a rematch with former heavyweight champion Tyson Fury, whom he defeated in May, Oleksandr Usyk talked about returning to cruiserweight, where he was the unified champion.
With new unified super light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev winning a narrow majority decision win over WBA champion Dimitrii Bivol, he talked about moving up to cruiserweight.
Few people know that Beterbiev, 78-8, fought Usyk, 70-12, in the amateurs in the quarterfinals of the AIBA World Championships in October 2011. Usyk took a decision win on his way to winning the tournament.
In August 2012, they had a rematch, with Usyk winning again, ending Beterbiev’s amateur career. It was in the London Olympic trials that Usyk eventually won the Gold Medal.
Then, Usyk went 7-0 in the World Series of Boxing, including a win over Joe Joyce in the fourth match in London.
Usyk, 22-0 with 14 stoppages, will again meet Fury, 34-1-1 with 24 stoppages, on December 21st at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh.
Though boxing fans would love to see a Beterbiev and Bivol rematch, Beterbiev may be forced to fight the No. 1 contender for his IBF title. At 39, how many fights does he have left in him? Usyk, at 37, is right behind him.
Usyk last fought at cruiserweight, defeating Tony Bellew, 30-2-1, in November 2018 at the Manchester Arena. Entering the heavyweight rankings, he would go on to defeat WBA, IBF, IBO, and WBO champion Anthony ‘AJ’ Joshua twice. Then, in his last fight before defeating Fury, he defeated Daniel Dubois, 19-1, by knockout in August 2023.
The fans want a Bivol and Beterbiev rematch, with many, including this writer, feeling Bivol deserved the decision. It may happen in 2025, with Beterbiev defending against someone else first. Where does this leave Bivol, you might ask?
For Usyk to defeat Fury and return to cruiserweight, he would be a favorite to re-gain those titles. Beterbiev may have several fights at light heavyweight before moving up to cruiserweight if he wins those fights, which would bring about a possible rematch with Usyk.
Read the full article here
