Oleksandr Usyk has proven himself as the standout heavyweight of this era, but two-weight world champion David Haye has picked out one divisional rival who could put an end to the Ukrainian’s reign.
Usyk joined Haye and Evander Holyfield as just the third fighter to claim a world title at both cruiserweight and heavyweight when he dethroned Anthony Joshua in 2021.
Since then, the Ukrainian southpaw has trumped ‘AJ’ for a second time, and twice beaten both Tyson Fury and Daniel Dubois to cement his legacy as a pound-for-pound great and establish himself as the best heavyweight on the planet.
Speaking to iFL TV, Haye applauded Usyk’s achievements, before declaring that 20-year-old sensation Moses Itauma is the biggest threat to his heavyweight throne.
“He [Itauma] has got the best shot out of anyone at beating him. Even with how inexperienced he is, he has got the fire power and the heavy-handedness to cause all sorts of problems for anybody.
“I know that Usyk is a genius, he is the best in the world. I am talking about the person who has the best chance of beating him, I’m not saying he is going to beat him. I am saying that who else is there that has a better chance [than Itauma]?
“Everyone else has tried and failed, he is young, fresh, hungry and he just seems to have crazy, heavy hands.
“Remember, Usyk isn’t a natural heavyweight. He is a pumped-up cruiserweight. He has done really well to be a heavyweight but the types of punches that Moses is throwing would take out any natural-born heavyweight.”
Itauma is expected to return to action in early 2026, after the WBA’s decision to allow Kubrat Pulev to face Murat Gassiev disrupted the Brit’s plans to fight for a third time this year.
