Oleksandr Usyk has three fights left in the game, hoping to extend his record to 27-0 before hanging up the gloves for good.
The elite Ukrainian was undisputed at cruiserweight before twice repeating that feat at heavyweight. Across the two divisions, he has statement wins over Murat Gassiev, Mairis Briedis, Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury.
Speaking on Inside the Ring, Usyk assured fans that while this outing may not be at the elite level he is known for, his final two fights will be.
“Rico, this is first. Second, it’s who wins Wardley-Dubois. Third fight is my friend, Greedy Belly, Tyson Fury.”
Asked how long he has left, Usyk confirmed that he was three and out.
Fabio Wardley was elevated from Interim to Full WBO champion when Usyk vacated the belt last year, and puts that status on the line against Dubois on May 9 in Manchester. Should ‘DDD’ win on the night, Usyk’s final two planned bouts may both be trilogy fights.
The 39-year-old from Simferopol has twice beaten both Dubois and Fury – who returns on April 9 against Arslanbek Makhmudov – stopping the former on both occasions and the latter on points. Fan interest in the bouts, therefore, may be limited.
However, if Wardley can retain in two months’ time, many would love to see the Ipswich man in there with a fighter in Usyk who has cemented himself as the greatest heavyweight of a generation.
Whether or not that would be for the undisputed championship looks unlikely. While Usyk’s WBC belt is controversially on the line against Verhoeven, the IBF and WBA are yet to comment on the fight.
More so, the WBC has ordered Usyk to face Agit Kabayel next, something that is clearly not in his plans. This means he may be stripped of all three belts in the not-so-distant future.
