Usyk is in no rush to step up to heavyweight
BOXING
Oleksandr Usyk is in no rush to move up to the heavyweight division to challenge England’s Anthony Joshua.
The Ukrainian defended his WBC, WBA, IBF and WBO cruiserweight titles – as well as the prestigious Ring Magazine belt – with Saturday’s devastating eighth-round knock-out of England’s Tony Bellew at Manchester Arena.
There have been rumours swirling for some time that Usyk is set to step up one weight class to the more lucrative heavyweight division, having seemingly beaten all foes at 200lb.
A bout against Joshua is particularly tantalising as both fighters won Olympic gold at London 2012 and have made giant strides in their unbeaten professional careers so far.
Usyk acknowledged that he will eventually move up to heavyweight but, when asked about a Joshua showdown, he said: “It’s too early. If you want to speak of this, then you can speak of this, but we still need to wait a little bit.
“You must be professional in taking those kinds of decisions. You need to take your time to think through everything properly but becoming the heavyweight champion is not what I’m dreaming of – it’s my goal, it’s what I’m planning to do.”
Usyk defied a determined start from Bellew and a hostile reception in Manchester to gradually get on top and prove why he is regarded as one of the finest fighters on the planet irrespective of weight class. He closed the show in spectacular fashion, following a rapier jab with a booming left hook that put Bellew on his back and forced referee Terry O’Connor to wave the count after two minutes of the eighth round.
An emotional but magnanimous Bellew said: “I just tried to take that one final step and, you know what, I wasn’t good enough, but I’ll be able to live with that forever.
“Part of me feels like I’ve failed again but it’s boxing at the highest level, so you’ve got to accept you can’t always win. He’s brilliant, Oleksandr, I only wish him well.
“I gave it everything I had. My career is over. I’ve been doing this for 20 years.”