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Since joining the professional ranks, Oleksandr Usyk (21-0, 14 KOs) has become one of the finest boxers of his generation.
The 2012 Olympic gold medalist was once the undisputed cruiserweight champion, a feat he could repeat in the heavyweight division should he emerge victorious against Tyson Fury in May. Usyk’s victories have helped him to accomplish what few have been able to do previously. Big Fight Weekend goes down memory lane and looks at five memorable wins for the brilliant Ukrainian.
Five Most Memorable Oleksandr Usyk Wins
Krzysztof Głowacki
The first time the Ukrainian won a professional world title was when he won a unanimous decision against Krzysztof Głowacki (32-4, 20 KOs) in 2016. Usyk dominated the fight, outboxing Głowacki to win with scores of 119-109 and 117-111 (x2). With the victory, he became the WBO cruiserweight champion. This proved to only be the beginning of Usyk’s success at this weight class.
Mairis Briedis
In one of the toughest fights of his career, Usyk became a unified champion with a majority decision win over Mairis Briedis (28-2, 20 KOs). The scores of 115-113 (x2) and 114-114 reflect how close of a fight this was.
Both men left the ring with their reputations enhanced. Despite fighting in Briedis’ home country of Latvia, Usyk was able to do just enough to walk away with the WBC and WBO belts.
Murat Gassiev
Usyk became only the third undisputed champion in cruiserweight history when he beat Murat Gassiev (30-2, 23 KOs, 1 NC) in 2018. The Ukrainian was dominant from start to finish, winning a unanimous decision with scores of 120-108 and 119-109. Previously, only Evander Holyfield and O’Neil Bell had reigned as undisputed cruiserweight champions.
Anthony Joshua I
There were doubts whether Usyk could replicate his success at heavyweight. However, he left the ring as unified champion after defeating Anthony Joshua (28-3, 25 KOs) via unanimous decision in 2021.
Usyk outboxed “AJ” over 12 rounds to win with scores of 117-112, 116-112 and 115-113, joining the likes of Holyfield and David Haye as fighters who won titles at cruiserweight and heavyweight. Usyk later proved that the win was no fluke, winning a split decision over Joshua almost a year later.
Daniel Dubois
In a fight that served as a homecoming of sorts, Usyk won via ninth-round stoppage over Daniel Dubois (20-2, 19 KOs) in August last year. The bout took place in Wrocław, Poland, a city with a large Ukrainian population. Given Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, this was the closest Usyk could get to a fight at home. The clash had a moment of controversy in round five after Dubois landed a punch ruled a low blow by the referee. Despite this, Usyk was able to eventually get the win.
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