Cruiserweight champion Oleksandr Usyk set to face Tony Bellew in Manchester
The undisputed cruiserweight champion will put his belts on the line against a former champ later this fall.
Matchroom Boxing have officially announced that undisputed cruiserweight world champion Oleksandr Usyk (15-0, 11 KOs) and former WBC cruiserweight champion Tony Bellew (30-2-1, 20 KOs) will face off against one another at the Manchester Arena on Saturday, Nov. 10.
The 31-year-old Ukrainian currently holds the WBC, WBA, IBF, WBO, and Ring Magazine belts and is regarded as one of the world’s top pound for pound fighters. Usyk became the first cruiserweight in history to simultaneously hold all four straps from the major sanctioning bodies after defeating Russian Murat Gassiev in July.
Usyk will be the bookies’ favorite to defend his titles against Bellew. The Englishman will at least have the bulk of fans on his side with the bout taking place in the U.K. Exactly how much of an advantage home soil will be against a fighter as formidable as Usyk is debatable, but the always boisterous English crowds should ensure there is a lively atmosphere.
“There is no greater test than Oleksandr Usyk, he is one of the most feared men in boxing,” Bellew said in a press release. “This is nothing new to me, everyone says that I can’t do it again. Everyone is saying that I’ll get beat-up quickly, but we’ll find out won’t we?”
Bellew, was the WBC cruiserweight champion before Usyk, but vacated the title after moving up to the heavyweight division to face fellow Englishman David Haye. Bellew defeated Haye in a pair of back-to-back bouts more notable for their prefight press conferences than their in-ring action but they helped bolster Bellew’s stock as a per-per-view draw.
In Usyk, Bellew will be facing a fighter in his prime as opposed to Haye, whose body was no longer capable of withstanding the rigors of boxing at the highest levels.
“Make no mistake, I know this is the most dangerous fight of my life but I’m also going into this with my eyes wide open, I’m not in awe of Usyk. I won’t stand and admire him and allow him to rattle off five-punch combinations on my head.
“I’m going into this fight with absolutely nothing to lose because the whole world thinks I’m going to get smashed. I have everything to gain and nothing to lose. On November 10, I’m going to do something that nobody has ever done before, I’m going to knock out an undisputed cruiserweight champion of the world.”
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The fight is a win-win-win situation for all parties involved. In Bellew, Usyk has an opponent with a large fan base who will ensure the fight will attract plenty of media coverage in the lucrative UK pay-per-view market. As good as Usyk is, he has yet to become a mainstream figure capable of attracting the casual fans who may only tune in to half a dozen fights a year.
For Bellew, the bout will bring with it not only another big payday but a chance at boxing immortality and for Matchroom it offers them the opportunity to build Usyk, who intends to compete in the heavyweight division, into a viable future opponent for IBF,WBO and WBA heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua or any of the other heavyweights in Eddie Hearn’s stable.
“All of our focus is on Tony Bellew and November 10, but once Usyk defeats him he will be targeting the king of the heavyweight division, Anthony Joshua,” said Alex Krassyuk of K2 Promotions, who are Usyk’s promoters and who have entered into a co-promotion arrangement with Matchroom.
The bout will be screened live on Sky Sports in the U.K. and on DAZN in the U.S.