Oleksandr Usyk’s victory over Daniel Dubois has to be considered another of his most significant, because of the traction that followed the claims that what was thrown in their first fight wasn’t a low blow.
Dubois, regardless, deserves credit for his performances after that, when he defeated Jarrell Miller, Filip Hrgovic and Anthony Joshua, because he showed a lot of improvement and ultimately earned his rematch the right way – in the ring.
It had been suggested that Oleksandr might show signs of age, but if anything, at 38 he looked rejuvenated. It’s not often I make comparisons to Joe Louis, but it was once said of Louis that opponents never made him looked bad the second time around, and we saw once again that that also rings true of Oleksandr.
I just wish that I had attended his post-fight press conference. I later learned that Oleksandr had looked for me because he was asked about the knockout punch – a punch I showed him in 2018, when we were in California and he was preparing for Michael Hunter. That punch – he called it “Ivan”, I believe after “Ivan the Terrible” – was used against Joshua and also to stop Tony Bellew. For a southpaw fighting a right hander – or even a right hander against a southpaw – it’s a technical punch capable of exploiting their contrasting stances. I’d have liked to have shared that moment with him – I asked him about “Ivan” before the fight; we’d shout it from the corner and it was a secret we shared – but the most important thing is that that punch delivered for him again.
Joseph Parker, like Dubois, has earned his shot at the undisputed heavyweight title the right way, but few things would make me happier than seeing Oleksandr retire at the very, very top. Oleksandr again looked so good against Dubois that the selfish part of me wants him to continue fighting and to continue being a part of his team – he’s responsible for some of the highlights of my career – but as his friend I’d like to see him walk away with all four titles before any of the sanctioning bodies can attempt to tarnish his legacy by taking one or more of them away. He deserves to be remembered among the very best. In 22 fights he’s done it all.
Oleksandr’s not only proven himself the greatest heavyweight of the modern era, he’s proved he’s one of the best heavyweights of all. I’d give him a chance of beating virtually any of them. I believe that he would have beaten, for example, Jack Dempsey and Rocky Marciano, among others. How many southpaws did those two fight between them? Larry Holmes, Muhammad Ali and Lennox Lewis would have posed far more of a threat to Oleksandr – but none would have been a huge favourite against him. All three would have made for terrific fights.
Beyond the heavyweight division, Oleksandr’s also, to my mind, proven himself one of the top 20 fighters in history. He might even be in the top 10.
*
Since fight night, there have been reports of Dubois attending a party on the day of the fight, but when I saw those reports, Manny Pacquiao sprung to mind. Pacquiao once loved having hundreds of people around him – even on his way to the dressing room – and his trainer Freddie Roach had to learn to accept that. Those reports said he did the same thing before he fought Joshua. The reaction to them strikes me as a little unfair.
What struck me as much more of a concern was how late he was arriving at Wembley Stadium. I favour arriving at a venue three hours in advance – I’d already finished wrapping Oleksandr’s right hand, and had started on his left, when footage showed Dubois reaching the venue. A fighter needs to be relaxed, and in a calm environment – Oleksandr, for example, arrived and had time to hang his flags, say his prayers, and go through his routine. There’s no way Dubois could have experienced anything like the same calm.
But, like the first time he lost to Oleksandr – he’s been written off before – as long as he wants to, at the age of 27 he can rebuild again.
*
Another of the fighters I worked with – for one fight, on the night in New York he fought Teofimo Lopez – is Josh Taylor. Josh announcing his retirement at the age of 34 made me wish I’d got to know him better – although I only worked with him for one night, all of the photos we have together are of us laughing and sharing a joke together. I enjoyed his company, and his sense of humour – and for that one fight he gifted me a tartan tie with his family crest, which I proudly wore in the corner. He loves boxing enough that I’m certain there’s a part of him that would love to fight on, but I want to wish him the best possible retirement, and I hope that he finds happiness in everything he achieved while he was active. No one can ever take that winning the undisputed title at 140lbs away from him.
Russ Anber is the founder/CEO of Rival Boxing, as well as a highly respected trainer (of both pros and amateurs), a gym owner, a cut-man, an entrepreneur, a broadcaster and one of the best hand wrappers in the boxing business. Oleksandr Usyk, Callum Smith, Janibek Alimkhanuly and Bakhram Murtazaliev are among the many top boxers Russ works with.
