Oleksandr Usyk’s farewell tour mapped out
Oleksandr Usyk has outlined his intentions for a farewell tour in boxing, aiming for three more fights before his retirement, reports BritPanorama.
The Ukrainian champion, an undisputed titleholder at both cruiserweight and heavyweight, will first face kickboxing icon Rico Verhoeven on 23 May at the Pyramids of Giza, Egypt. The bout will feature Usyk’s WBC heavyweight title on the line.
At 39 years of age, Usyk has expressed his desire to continue fighting for another two years, until he reaches 41.
Following the Verhoeven matchup, Usyk’s attention will turn to the winner of the forthcoming WBO heavyweight title fight between Fabio Wardley and Daniel Dubois, scheduled for 9 May in Manchester, just two weeks before Usyk’s Egyptian bout.
Usyk’s ultimate goal for his closing chapter in the ring is a highly anticipated trilogy fight against Tyson Fury. “Third fight, it’s my friend, greedy belly Tyson Fury,” Usyk stated, having previously defeated Fury in two closely contested encounters in Saudi Arabia throughout 2024.
Fury has voiced his belief that he should have won both of those matches. Promoter Frank Warren has indicated his enthusiasm to facilitate the third meeting, asserting, “There’s a lot of frustration because Fabio wanted that [Usyk fight before]. But the fact that Oleksandr has come out and said he wants the winner of the two of them, it’s very encouraging.”
Warren, who promotes both Wardley and Dubois, has expressed optimism about the prospects of a unification bout and indicated that both previous fights between Usyk and Fury were engaging contests. “The first two fights were close, very exciting fights, really exciting fights, I’d watch that all day long,” he remarked.
Meanwhile, Fury is set to return to the ring on 11 April against Arslanbek Makhmudov at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. However, one fighter not on Usyk’s farewell agenda is young British prospect Moses Itauma, whom he has declined to face, stating, “I [don’t] want to fight with Itauma, because he’s a young guy, I don’t want to break this guy.”
As Usyk prepares for his farewell tour, the boxing community is keenly anticipating how these matchups will unfold and what legacy he will leave in the sport.
