Never a man to be one-upped, Oleksandr Usyk has proposed a fight with an MMA star in the wake of the news that his championship rival, Tyson Fury, will be doing the same.
Despite an undisputed fight between the two heavyweights being one of the most sought-after in the sport of boxing, negotiations have failed to bear fruit.
It’s left fans frustrated and both Fury and Usyk forced to look elsewhere to stay active. Usyk’s path leads him to Daniel Dubois – the first mandatory challenger for the three belts he holds.
Fury won’t be defending his world title, instead opting for a mega-money event with former UFC champion, Francis Ngannou.
In response to Fury’s crossover bout via Seconds Out, Usyk suggested one of his own.
“I have no ambitions beside one ambition – it’s to fight Tyson Fury … I saw that Conor McGregor put some significant weight on his body. Hey Conor, why don’t we make a fight at Wembley?”
The Ukrainian has made his goal clear since he became undisputed in the cruiserweight division and moved up to join the big men, so a McGregor bout is most likely tongue in cheek.
He has, though, expressed interest in the past in what he calls a ‘freak fight’ towards the end of his career.
In the meantime, he faces Dubois on August 26. Should he come through as many expect him to, his team will look to reignite talks with Fury’s side to make the four belt clash happen for the first quarter of 2024.
Fury is out against Ngannou on October 28 in Saudi Arabia – the expected location for the undisputed bout should the pair manage an agreement this time around.