What next for Oleksandr Usyk?

In boxing, momentum is important.

Building momentum can achieve many things: it can keep a fighter’s name relevant in big fight discussions, it can keep them active and sharp in the ring, and it can keep their reputation amongst fans of fisticuffs.

After a disappointing 2019, Oleksandr Usyk needs to rebuild his momentum.

After an incredible start to his pro career that saw him unify all four titles in boxing’s deepest and toughest division and a pay-per-view fight against Tony Bellew that saw him crossover into the British public’s consciousness, a move to heavyweight would surely have brought him the biggest fights in the division (namely stablemate Anthony Joshua)

His first fight under the Matchroom banner was due to be perennial contender Carlos Takam. At the time I felt this was a step back for him, and also wouldn’t have taught us much, what with Takam being a relatively small heavyweight and not notable for any one facet of his game.

A bicep injury for Usyk curtailed that anyway, and an even more shambolic piece of matchmaking against kickboxing standout Tyrone Spong fell apart at the last minute as well.

So Usyk was faced with late-notice replacement Chazz Witherspoon, a fighter who hasn’t been relevant for a decade and wasn’t even that formidable in his prime.

A few digs aside, Witherspoon had little to no success, but to read some accounts on twitter you would have thought that Usyk was exposed as a cruiserweight with no chance in boxing’s biggest division.

So for the former cruiserweight kingpin he needs to rebuild momentum: get a bigger name in the ring, rebuild confidence with boxing casuals, and get his name back in the conversation for big fights.

It seems that Usyk is unlikely to fight three time in 2020, so instead of trying to map out a full schedule for him, we at The Fight Site thought we might take a look at who his first opponent of the new decade might be.

Dereck Chisora (32-9, 23 KOs)

The name that keeps coming up for Usyk’s first fight of 2020 is the veteran British heavyweight known as ‘Del Boy’.

Undeniably past his very best, Chisora continues to keep him name relevant with a mixture of hard-fought losses and wins over fringe level opposition. Knocked out late by Dillian Whyte in 2018, he bounced back with an impressive 2019, beating Senad Gashi by decision in a poor fight that made Chisora look like he was ready for retirement, destroying talented but chinny Pole Artur Szpilka in two rounds, then forcing a stoppage over the always-vulnerable David Price to see out the year.

Rumours online have suggested that Usyk could face Chisora in March at the O2 Arena in London. But is this a fight we as fans should want to see?

If we look at building momentum, an impressive win for Usyk over Chisora would get British fans talking about him again. Love him or hate him, Chisora is a relevant name to the UK faithful, and the more tweets, facebook shares and YouTube views any Usyk-Chisora material gets, the more likely Eddie Hearn is to see a potential super-fight between the Ukrainian genius and Anthony Joshua as a viable endeavour.

But what would the fight look like? Do not be fooled by Chisora’s gutsy performances, because he has been known to look terrible and out of ideas against opponents that do not give him favourable looks (look back to 2016 and 2017 against Kubrat Pulev and Agit Kabayel).

Look for a fight similar to Usyk vs. Witherspoon, and don’t think that Chisora would do any better than Chazz either. It’d be much more likely that Usyk would turn the wick up instead, and force a stoppage in around 8-10 rounds.

Joseph Parker (26-2, 20 KOs)

Kiwi boxer-puncher Joseph Parker previously held the WBO title, but gave a tepid performance against Anthony Joshua in a fight that was as dull as it was disappointing.

He later gave a spirited performance against Dillian Whyte, only to lose on the cards. Notably, he holds a victory over Andy Ruiz, a bout in retrospect that looks both excellent (given Ruiz’s later demolition job on Anthony Joshua) and poor (given that some felt that Ruiz was robbed).

Fighting twice after his loss to Whyte against uninspiring opposition, Parker isn’t a name that makes you scream with joy when you hear him as a potential Usyk opponent. He’s a decent enough—but far from elite—world ranked heavyweight.

It’s that latter part of the prior statement that has put him in the forefront of discussions though.

Whether Usyk fights Parker or not is entirely dependent on three-belt champ Anthony Joshua’s decision when it comes to facing his mandatories.

Should he choose IBF mandatory Kubrat Pulev, it is likely that the WBO belt will become vacant and Usyk will fight former strap-holder Parker for the title.

This is the fight Usyk appears to be looking at—and much prefers to taking on Dereck Chisora—according to Sky Sports:

"Chisora is impossible for the title," Alexander Krassyuk, Usyk's long-term promoter who now works alongside Eddie Hearn, exclusively told Sky Sports.

"In case it turns out that the WBO title is vacant, Usyk will be happy to fight for it," Krassyuk explained. "And Joseph Parker is the highest available contender."

But how would the fight look?

My assessment of Parker is that—late round heroics against Dillian Whyte aside—he has become increasingly gun-shy against top-level opponents after his bruising fight with Carlos Takam back in 2016.

With Usyk being on the lower end of punchers up at heavyweight (you would have to assume, given he was an accumulative striker down at 200lbs) there’s a chance that Parker might try and impose himself on Usyk more.

But I see Usyk’s mastery of the ring being too much for him. Junior Fa not only beat Parker in the amateurs, but isn’t too far off of him stylistically, and Usyk beat him without much hassle in the WoSB (pro-rules amateur vs. amateur tournament). It’s a basic assessment, but look for Usyk to pick Parker off with relative ease, the big man from Auckland’s durability keeping him in the game through 12.

Of course, the fight might not happen. Anthony Joshua might choose to instead vacate the IBF title, which means our final choice is an easy one.

Anthony Joshua (23-1, 21 KOs)

I still think that boxing fans would most like to see this one out of the three options presented here. A three-belt champion at heavyweight versus the four-belt champion from cruiserweight. One of the rare occasions two Olympic gold medalists from the same games have fought each other in the pro ranks. A huge boxer-puncher with big power in either hand but questionable stamina, against a smaller defensive master with a gas tank that never empties.

Styles wise, this fight would be as intriguing as any combination of Joshua, Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury. And with the latter two tied up for February and likely indefinitely given the promotional deals of all three champions (Wilder WBC, Joshua the other three, Fury lineal) it seems that the only way Joshua can get a mega-fight is if he fights Usyk, for whom promotional wrangling will not be an issue.

Joshua recently spoke on Usyk, but didn’t commit to actually fighting him. Mentioning him is encouraging, but his wording less so:

"When I'm trying to build my record, I want opponents like Usyk to say that I've defeated them.”

It’s that like (emphasis mine) that worries me. Does he mean ‘opponents of Usyk’s stature but not Usyk’? Or does he literally mean Usyk?

To Joshua’s credit, further comments to Sky Sports demonstrate that he is actively thinking about the matchup already":

“He uses his feet very well, and positions his hands well. You can't hit him because his feet move so well. If you do manage to catch him, [the punches] are brushing off the gloves. What I'd do, as I have done already, is study him - from his footwork, his hand positioning, to his openings. Then I'd go to former people who have faced him and find out information on how to defeat him."

Given how he boxed against Andy Ruiz in his successful rematch back in December 2019, would Joshua try to outbox Usyk? Keep the defensive master walking forward, try and stop the shorter man from getting close and doing much work?

Or would he impose his size and him and try and bully him around the ring?

My major concern for either strategy would be Usyk’s adaptability, and also his seemingly endless pool of energy reserves: My hunch is that whatever tact Joshua takes, the Ukrainian would cause him to keep thinking, keep moving, keep twitching, and keep burning his limited stamina until he’s prone to Usyk’s assaults.

It won’t be a popular hypothesis, but I see Usyk drowning Joshua late, a tired and clueless A.J pulled out as the punches keep flying in.

But who would you faithful Fight Site readers like Usyk to fight next? Would it be Chisora, in an intriguing non-title fight to rebuild Usyk’s heavyweight reputation? Would it be Parker for the vacant WBO championship? Or A.J in a fight that would surely get everyone talking? Let us know in the comments or on Twitter @FightSiteDotCom

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Thanks to good friend of The Fight Site Mike Jarsulic for the photo.