LAS VEGAS — The dog barking in the background was a welcome relief for Oleksandr Usyk from the sirens that had recently been wailing in his hometown of Vorzel, Ukraine.
Usyk, The RING, IBF, WBA, WBO world heavyweight champion, has been watching the heavyweight division’s recent traffic with a smile. Through manager Egis Klimas, a three-time BWAA Manager of the Year, Usyk (20-0, 13 KOs) spoke exclusively with The Ring on Wednesday afternoon about his future, newly-fought Tyson Fury-Anthony Joshua for the WBC title and who could possibly be his next opponent.
When asked how much his life has changed since he beat Joshua for the second time on August 20, via split decision, Usyk said: “I’m happy, I’m home, but there’s only been one change, I beat Joshua for the second time. time”. weather. Everything else is the same.
“I don’t have a lot of feelings about (Fury and Joshua fighting). I don’t really care if Fury wants to fight someone. My team is working to get him back in the ring.
“And no, no, I’m not mad at all (for being passed over by Fury for Joshua). The biggest problem is that Tyson Fury is not letting fans see one of the greatest historic bouts in boxing history. That’s his fault. It is not mine. So I’m not mad at all. Tyson Fury can fight whoever he wants to fight.
“From a fair play standpoint, of course it’s not right (for Fury to fight Joshua instead of him).”
When asked who he would like to fight next, Usyk replied in English: “Deontay Wilder.”
Usyk went on to say, “Wilder is a dangerous fighter, and that fight would probably be in the United States.”
Usyk said he will most likely be ringside when Wilder, the former WBC champion, faces Robert Helenius (31-3, 20 KOs) on October 8 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
An Usyk clash with Wilder (42-2-1, 41 KOs) would be a great contrast of styles, between the Ukrainian southpaw scientist with the magic hands opposed to the heavy hands of Wilder.
Usyk is The Ring’s number one pound-for-pound fighter in the world and was the 2018 The Ring and BWAA Fighter of the Year. However, he avoids praise. He points it in one direction, winds it up and he’s ready to go to war.
“I have people around me who respect me, and we talk about it, and I don’t really care what other people think,” Usyk said. “I care what my people think. I have my country that I love and that’s why I wanted to come back home (after the Joshua fight). I’m sitting in my backyard right now and the country is at war. You hear sirens. You learn to survive all this.
“That is the most important message. I personally feel what the rest of the world feels about us. If I wasn’t a boxer, I’d be an actor. He would be a very good actor.”
Klimas noted that if Joshua beat Fury, there would be a rematch, which would push back any chance of Fury facing Usyk in 2023. Klimas also said that Team Usyk will not “go after Tyson Fury.” Usyk will return in early 2023 against the winner of Wilder-Helenius.
“Usyk is the heavyweight champion of the world and look at how many statements Fury has made these last few months, he is retiring, he is not retiring, he is fighting Usyk, he is not Usyk, and now he is fighting Joshua, you really don’t know what Fury is. we’re going to do next,” explained Klimas. “If you look at his past, everything that happened, Fury always caused a problem when it came to getting an undisputed world champion. It’s unpredictable.
“What happens when Joshua beats him up? What will happen next? They will go to a rematch, which will delay the possibility of having an undisputed world champion. I think Fury is most likely scared of Usyk. Why is he running away from Usyk? Why? Because Fury sees danger in Usyk.
“Usyk wanted to fight Fury by the end of the year. You know what, we’re not going to run after him. We have three belts. He has a belt. Who cares? It’s a situation created by Fury. Not Usyk. Usyk would fight Tyson Fury in his backyard. Usyk would fight anyone in his backyard.
“It was very important for Usyk to return to Ukraine and its people.”
Usyk plans an October tour of the United States. One stop will be Brooklyn for the Wilder-Helenius fight. Usyk will then go to Los Angeles for a dinner on October 20 to launch the Oleksandr Usyk Foundation.
For now, the world heavyweight champion is resting and this Saturday will see Canelo Alvarez fight Gennadiy Golovkin (“Somehow I think it’s going to be Canelo Alvarez,” he predicts).
“Usyk would like to fight Wilder, but whoever wins that fight will be next for Usyk,” Klimas said. “Usyk is not like Fury. He is looking for the winners, not the losers.”
Joseph Santoliquito is an award-winning sportswriter who has been working for Ring Magazine/RingTV.com since October 1997 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. You can follow him on twitter @JSantoliquito [twitter.com].
