Boxing

Oleksandr Usyk Reveals Next Opponent With Four Words

Oleksandr Usyk already knows who his next opponent will be.
Grant Young|
Oleksandr Usyk during a press conference at Kingdom Arena, Riyadh on May 18, 2024.
Oleksandr Usyk during a press conference at Kingdom Arena, Riyadh on May 18, 2024. | IMAGO / PA Images

One of the reasons why the scheduled Daniel Dubois vs. Joseph Parker fight for the IBF world heavyweight championship on February 22 was so compelling was because all indications were that the winner would then fight Oleksandr Usyk.

Alas, the Dubois vs. Parker fight never came to fruition after Dubois had to withdraw due to illness just two days before the fight was slated to take place.

As a result, Parker fought Martin Bakole, who he knocked out in two rounds. While some might have believed this victory would secure Parker a shot at Usyk, that couldn't be further from the case.

Usyk was in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia to watch the iconic 'The Last Crescendo' card in person. And during a mid-card interview with talkSPORT, Usyk revealed who he would be fighting next.

"I think it's Dubois," Usyk said when asked who his next opponent would be, per an X post from talkBOXING. He was then asked whether the fight would likely be taking place in May.

"I don't know. It's a deal for, I guess, his excellency [Turki Alalshikh] the time. I don't know. I'm ready," Usyk responded.

Of course, this won't be the first time that Usyk and Dubois have faced off, as they met in the ring back in 2023. While Usyk won via ninth-round stoppage, it wasn't without controversy, as there was a questionable low blow Dubois delivered to Usyk which was ultimately deemed a groin shot but which many believed was legal.

It seems that despite not fighting this weekend, Dubois will get an opportunity to right that prior wrong against the Ukranian.

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Grant Young
GRANT YOUNG

Grant Young is a Staff Writer for On SI’s Boxing, New York Mets, Indiana Fever, and Women’s Fastbreak sites. Before joining SI in 2024, he wrote for various boxing and sports verticals such as FanBuzz and NY Fights. Young has a bachelor’s degree in marketing and a master’s degree in creative writing with an emphasis on sports nonfiction from the University of San Francisco, where he played five seasons of Division 1 baseball. He fought Muay Thai professionally in Thailand in 2023, loves a good essay, and is driven crazy trying to handle a pitpull puppy named Aura. Young lives in San Diego and was raised in the San Francisco Bay Area.