It appears that Oleksandr Usyk has a clear idea in mind for what he wants from his final fight.
The Ukrainian announced on Friday that he was vacating his WBC, WBA and IBF world heavyweight titles, but would still have ‘one last dance’ before retiring.
With potential fights against the likes of Agit Kabayel and Moses Itauma now seemingly off the table, many onlookers thought that a rematch with kickboxing star Rico Verhoeven could be the likely next option for Usyk.
That fight ended in a controversial 11th round stoppage, with the Dutchman giving Usyk a much harder fight than everybody expected, and the bout only ending when Verhoeven was stopped by the referee, arguably early, and also after the bell had already rung.
Despite the close nature of that contest, it seems Verhoeven isn’t in the running to face Usyk again. Last weekend, promoter Eddie Hearn suggested that former WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder would be the man in the opposite corner. However, Inside The Ring are now reporting that a fight with UFC star Jon Jones is also a possibility.
“Oleksandr Usyk is eyeing a fight against Deontay Wilder or former UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones later this year in the United States, Usyk’s advisor Sergey Lapin tells The Ring’s @MikeCoppinger.”
A fight between Usyk and Wilder has been rumoured for some time dating back to last year, so it would come as no surprise if the Ukrainian would choose to go down that route in order to end his career with a big fight in America.
Having once been the long-reigning feared WBC champion, Wilder’s form had dipped as of late, though he did claim a split decision win over Derek Chisora at The O2 Arena in April.
A fight between Usyk and mixed martial arts legend Jones is a new suggestion though, and would likely not appeal to many boxing fans, with Jones having never competed in the sport, and only having had one MMA bout in the past three years.
