Last month, Oleksandr Usyk came shockingly close to losing his heavyweight titles and undefeated record against Rico Verhoeven, in a fight which has raised questions as to what the 39-year-old has left.
For the Ukrainian, Agit Kabayel seems to be his next threat, but stablemate Anthony Joshua believes that there is another man that Usyk should face instead.
Kabayel has sat patiently, waiting for his shot at Usyk and the opportunity to end Germany’s 94-year wait for a full heavyweight world champion, since Max Schmeling lost his title to Jack Sharkey in 1932 via a questionable split-decision.
The 33-year-old has held the WBC Interim title since he knocked out Zhilei Zhang in February 2025 – defending it once against Damian Knyba earlier this year – and many fans see him as a potential Achilles’ heel to Usyk’s generational run, due to his powerful body blows.
Yet, despite being promised a world title challenge in September, the controversy that surrounded Usyk’s win over Verhoeven could see that bid pushed back. Speaking to Ring Magazine, Joshua admitted that he would rather see a rematch with Verhoeven than a showdown between Usyk and Kabayel.
“They are both phenomenal options, aren’t they? As a fight fan, I want to see Rico vs. Usyk again.
“Just that rematch, you know how big rematches are; they have got a storyline, they have got history, Egypt, the stoppage, Usyk was apparently losing on the scorecards, there is that backstory. So, it is like we are already building on foundations that have already been cemented.
“Agit Kabayel and Usyk is still a massive fight, I like the way that Agit is calling him out, but as I said, from a pure fan point of view, I think the rematch would just be amazing.”
Kabayel’s promoter, Frank Warren, has insisted that he will not allow Verhoeven to intervene and disrupt his fighter’s planned challenged for the heavyweight throne. Although, Usyk could opt to vacate the WBC title, in order to retain full control of opponent selection ahead of his planned 2027 retirement.
