The great Oleksandr Usyk has spoken – we now know who the unified world heavyweight champion wants to meet in his next fight.
Usyk (24-0) is now 38 years old and has done everything in boxing a man could desire. Olympic champion, undisputed cruiserweight world champion and now a two-time undisputed world heavyweight champion.
The Ukrainian maestro has scaled every summit, repelled every challenger, mostly on the road in hostile environments. In the case of British stars Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua and Daniel Dubois – he’s done it twice.
Usyk was forced to give up his WBO world title last month, clearly not believing that his next move should be a mandatory defence against Britain’s fairytale fighter Fabio Wardley.
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Instead Oleksandr is looking to bigger things, and has named the man he wants to meet. And it is – drum roll – big-punching former WBC king Deontay Wilder.
Usyk would start a huge favourite for this one, should it happen in 2026. And the Wilder camp appear game, why wouldn’t they?
There are reasons to believe it’s the absolute perfect choice for Usyk, and there are reasons to feel just a little bit underwhelmed at the same time. Here is why…
Usyk vs Wilder, why it’s perfect
We should say first that Usyk has earned the right to choose who he fights – he owes no man nor sanctioning body anything after his glittering career to date. And in many ways, he’s chosen perfectly here.
It appears Fury and Joshua are on course to meet each other at some stage next year (September in London appears to be the likely landing spot for that long-awaited superfight). So those two would be out as potential opponents, and would we really want a trilogy fight anyway?
The rest of the heavyweights just below that elite level are made up of contenders, fighters who may be really good or even great one day, but don’t have the CV to demand a huge TV audience. Wardley, Agit Kabayel, Joseph Parker etc. None really set the pulse racing.
The one man still in the top 15 who does have some box office potential is Wilder. The man from Tuscaloosa, Alabama is now 40 years old and has not looked remotely impressive since losing to Fury in an epic trilogy fight in late 2021.
But Wilder has two things in his favour – he is American, and he has a huge right hand. The ability to draw a crowd, with at least the lingering threat he could do something incredible. It’s Rocky territory.
Outside of Fury and Joshua, and a crossover fight with Jake Paul (please, no) Wilder might be the biggest payday out there for Usyk. So of course, it makes sense.
And why it’s not perfect
So we’ve given you the reasons why Usyk is right to choose Wilder, now the flip side.
Oleksandr is an amazing fighter, one who always relishes taking on the biggest of challenges. Sadly, these days, Deontay is not that.
Wilder was massively unimpressive in losing his last two meaningful fights – to Joseph Parker in December 2023 and Chinese giant Zhilei Zhang in the summer of 2024. He has never been a technically gifted fighter but he appeared shot on both occasions, no longer able to pull the trigger either.
‘The Bronze Bomber’ did return to the ring in June 2025, stopping Tyrrell Herndon in seven rounds in Wichita. But aside from maybe removing a little ring rust, one look at Herndon’s record shows that fight proved nothing.
Ask most experts out there about Wilder and they will tell you he is a shadow of the fighter who once struck fear into the hearts of opponents. Even in his pomp he needed that knockout punch, most rivals would comfortably outbox him.
While on the face of it, to the casual, it is a fight which might sell to a point in America (or Saudi), it’s hardly a dangerous assignment for Oleksandr. And for that reason, we are just a little bit underwhelmed.
So who should Usyk fight?
So as we said, Usyk has earned the choice here to make his own decision, but that does not mean we can’t all have an opinion. And there is one fight out there, that is available, which would absolutely set the pulse racing.
Moses Itauma, the 13-0 British phenom, is the most exciting thing to hit the heavyweight division since Mike Tyson back in the 1980s. A devastating mix of speed, power and ring savvy. Put simply, he looks the realest of deals.
Fighting Itauma would undoubtedly be a risk for Usyk, the biggest risk out there for him right now. But he has made a career by taking on the mightiest challenges, by elevating his legacy even further.
Usyk vs Itauma would be a massive collision of the young pretender against the brilliant and established champion. A crossroads fight for the heavyweight division and a matchup to savour.
Maybe it will happen one day but for now it appears Oleksandr is headed in a different direction. Yes, he’ll make some money, and yes he will beat Wilder.
But us, we’re just a little bit underwhelmed…
