Is Wilder Inching Into Position To Revisit Fight Vs. Usyk?
Deontay Wilder could become Oleksandr Usyk’s most viable option.
After beating Derek Chisora on April 4 at O2 Arena in London, Wilder, who was only ranked No. 12 by the WBC, is now ranked No. 10 by the IBF as well. Beyond his two top-15 rankings, Wilder’s name recognition and status as a former WBC champ – and Usyk’s dwindling list of potential future foes – could make them appealing opponents for each other again later this year.
Before he faced Chisora, Wilder, who made 10 successful defenses of his WBC crown before losing his belt to Tyson Fury in February 2020, was on the verge of finalizing a deal to challenge Usyk, who owns The Ring, IBF, WBA and WBC heavyweight titles.
Wilder (45-4-1, 43 KOs), of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, opted for a fight with Chisora once talks stalled. Ukraine’s Usyk (24-0, 15 KOs) also moved on. He’s now scheduled to face Rico Verhoeven, a professional kickboxer, in the main event of The Ring’s show at the Pyramids of Giza in Egypt on May 23.
For the 39-year-old heavyweight king, he mentioned in a previous interview on “Inside The Ring” that he had just three fights left before he’d retire. One, of course, is coming against Verhoeven.
The next would be against the winner of WBO heavyweight champion, Fabio Wardley vs. Daniel Dubois. That bout is set to take place May 9 at Co-op Live Arena in Manchester, England.
For Usyk’s last bout, he would like it to take place against Tyson Fury. Usyk beat Fury by decision in back-to-back fights in 2024.
Those bouts, however, might be off the table.
The Ring’s No. 1-ranked heavyweight and No. 1-ranked pound-for-pound fighter has knocked out Dubois twice.
If Dubois upsets Wardley, a third meeting between Dubois and Usyk makes little financial sense. Usyk also vacated his WBO strap on November 17 instead of facing Wardley, who had the interim championship, and claimed that a fight against Wardley wasn’t financially rewarding.
As for Fury, he ended a year-and-a-half retirement Saturday night by beating Arslanbek Makhmudov at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London. After scoring that lopsided unanimous decision, Fury said that a fight with Anthony Joshua is the only one that interests him.
With Fury apparently headed in a different direction, Wilder is suddenly an attractive alternative for Usyk again.
To add more credibility to his world title hopes, the WBO recently told The Ring that it is considering placing Wilder in its top 15. The WBO is set to release its rankings toward the end of this month.
Wilder called out Joshua immediately after knocking Chisora down twice and picking himself up off the canvas as well. But with Joshua ostensibly on the verge of facing Fury in an all-British mega clash, it would make sense for the hard-hitting star to revisit a fight versus Usyk as well.
