What next for Oleksandr Usyk?
Usyk was unfazed by the hostile reception he faced at the Manchester Arena.
Oleksandr Usyk underlined his status as one of the finest fighters of his era with a devastating eighth-round knockout of Tony Bellew at the weekend.
Usyk was unfazed by the hostile reception he faced at the Manchester Arena and retained his WBC, WBA, IBF and WBO cruiserweight titles – plus the prestigious Ring Magazine belt – by clinically ending Bellew’s brave challenge.
The Ukrainian has been linked with a move up to the more lucrative heavyweight division so, here, Press Association Sport considers some of the 31-year-old’s options.
Anthony Joshua
It is not hard to see the attraction: both men are Olympic gold medallists and have risen to the top of their respective weight classes in style. A showdown between the undisputed cruiserweight champion and the man widely regarded as the man to beat at heavyweight seems inevitable, especially as Usyk signed a multi-fight deal with the same promotional company as Joshua earlier this year. Usyk, though, will need to acclimatise to the blue riband division with one or two tune-ups and even admitted on Saturday night it was “too early” to be talking about fighting Joshua next.
Dillian Whyte
