Usyk wants to be undisputed heavyweight champion
A bout between Usyk and Fury would pit the two best boxers in the heavyweight division against each other.
Unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk 20-0 (13) has doubled down on his desire to face WBC boss Tyson Fury 32-0-1 (23) next, saying his primary objective is to become the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world.
The 35-year-old Ukrainian southpaw lifted the WBA, WBO and IBF world titles from Anthony Joshua 24-3 (22) by unanimous decision in September last year. He repeated the feat in August in a closer fight that was scored 116-112, 115-113 and 113-115 in his favour.
British boxer Fury, 34, is coming off a sixth-round knockout win over mandatory contender Dillian Whyte 28-3 (19) in April. He announced his retirement after the bout but has since reneged on that decision.
Fury has a fight planned against old foe Derek Chisora 33-12 (23) at Tottenham Hotspurs Stadium in Tottenham, England on December 3.
It will be the third fight between the pair after Fury defeated Chisora on points in 2011 and stopped him in 10 rounds three years later.
A bout between Usyk and Fury would pit the two best boxers in the heavyweight division against each other.
“Right now my team is seeking conversations with Tyson Fury and he is really an unpredictable person, so we can’t guarantee when,” Usyk said at a Web Summit in Lisbon.
“For me, the idea would be to fight maybe early February or the beginning of March, like March 4, because I am an orthodox Christian. During the great fasting before Easter I do not fight, so it should be all before or then after orthodox Easter [which is on April 16]. I want to fight with Fury because I need the fourth belt and I don’t want to fight with anyone else until I have the fourth belt.”
The bout between Usyk and Fury would likely take place in the Middle East.
“The organisers are trying to figure out where they can earn more money. For me, yes, I would really like to fight in Ukraine. The country is really capable of hosting this kind of fight,” Usyk said.
“I would be really happy to see it happen in the Olympic Arena in Ukraine. But it is not me who chooses the venue, so I guess it will be Saudi Arabia [this time].”
