Oleksandr Usyk

Oleksandr Oleksandrovych Usyk was born on January 17, 1987, in Simferopol, Crimean Oblast, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union. His early years saw him engaged in football until the age of 15, training at the SC Tavriya Simferopol Olympic reserve school, before transitioning to boxing in 2002. Usyk’s amateur career was marked by significant achievements, including a bronze medal at the 2006 European Championships, a gold medal at the 2008 European Championships as a light-heavyweight, and gold medals at the 2011 World Championships and the 2012 London Olympics in the heavyweight division. He retired from amateur boxing with an impressive record of 335 wins and 15 losses, and also competed successfully in the World Series of Boxing between 2012 and 2013, winning all six of his bouts.

Usyk turned professional in late 2013 at 26, signing with K2 Promotions. He made his professional debut on November 9, 2013, defeating Mexican fighter Felipe Romero via fifth-round knockout. His ascent in the cruiserweight division was rapid, securing his first title, the interim WBO Inter-Continental cruiserweight title, in October 2014. He successfully defended this title multiple times before challenging Krzysztof Głowacki for the WBO cruiserweight title in September 2016, which he won by unanimous decision. This victory marked the beginning of his dominance in the division. Usyk entered the World Boxing Super Series tournament, where he unified the WBC and WBO cruiserweight titles against Mairis Briedis in January 2018, and then became the undisputed cruiserweight champion by defeating Murat Gassiev in July 2018, winning the WBA (Super) and IBF titles as well as the vacant Ring magazine cruiserweight title. His final cruiserweight defense was against Tony Bellew in November 2018, which he won by knockout.

In 2019, Usyk transitioned to the heavyweight division, making his debut against Chazz Witherspoon in October 2019. He continued his winning streak by defeating Derek Chisora in October 2020, positioning himself for a heavyweight world title shot. In September 2021, Usyk faced unified heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua, winning the WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, and IBO heavyweight titles by unanimous decision. He successfully defended these titles in a rematch against Joshua in August 2022 and against Daniel Dubois in August 2023. In May 2024, Usyk made history by defeating Tyson Fury to claim the WBC title, becoming the first undisputed heavyweight champion of the four-belt era and the first male boxer to be a three-time undisputed champion across two weight classes. He then solidified his status by defeating Tyson Fury again in December 2024 and Daniel Dubois in a rematch in July 2025, becoming a two-time undisputed heavyweight champion.