Usyk Promises to Fight in Ukraine Before Retirement: Wish Fulfilled

Usyk Promises to Fight in Ukraine Before Retirement

Oleksandr Usyk has expressed his strong desire to fight once more in his home country, Ukraine, before hanging up his gloves. Usyk (23-0, 14 KOs) will face Daniel Dubois on July 19 at Wembley Stadium, London, in search of the undisputed heavyweight championship. Despite his impressive record, which includes an Olympic gold medal and multiple world titles in two divisions, Usyk has one pending goal before his retirement: to fight at home.

Oleksandr Usyk claims he will fight in Ukraine again.

“I don’t expect… I know it will be like that,” Usyk affirmed when asked about the possibility of fighting in Ukraine.

Oleksandr Usyk

“Everything I start to do, and everything I have started, I will finish to the end,” he added. Since becoming the cruiserweight world champion in 2016 and then conquering the heavyweight division, Usyk has not fought in Ukraine since 2015. Russia’s large-scale invasion in 2022 disrupted any plans the 38-year-old boxer might have had to fight in front of his compatriots.

“There’s a lot of talk about it. I really want the war to end. Nobody wants the war to end more than we Ukrainians do,” Usyk said.

Oleksandr Usyk

“We understand what war means, it has scattered us all over the world. Yes, I am training here [in Spain] now because I can’t train in Kyiv. It’s not safe there.”

Oleksandr Usyk trains for his fight against Daniel Dubois on July 19.“Actually, I could [train there], but the training partners wouldn’t come. We are really hoping the war ends, but it must end in a way that it doesn’t start again in three to five years.” After the invasion, Usyk joined the territorial defense forces along with former three-division world champion Vasiliy Lomachenko. His compatriots asked Usyk to return to the ring and lift the country’s spirits. While he hasn’t had the luxury of fighting at home like other champions, Usyk’s record in the UK and against British boxers is an ominous sign for Dubois ahead of their rematch. The Ukrainian has defeated Tony Bellew and Derek Chisora in England, and has two victories over Anthony Joshua in England and Saudi Arabia, respectively. In his last three fights, he has defeated Dubois in Poland and Tyson Fury twice, both in Saudi Arabia.