The only undisputed heavyweight champion of the 21st century has now disrupted his fully unified reign for the second time.
BoxingScene has confirmed that Oleksandr Usyk has relinquished the WBO heavyweight title, in lieu of proceeding with an ordered title consolidation clash. The move will see recently crowned interim beltholder Fabio Wardley elevated and now seen as the solely recognized titleholder in the eyes of the Puerto Rico-headquartered organization.
“The WBO… has received formal communication from Team Oleksandr Usyk regarding the future of the WBO Heavyweight championship,” the sanctioning body announced on Monday. “After thoughtful consideration, Usyk has elected to relinquish his title.”
Ukraine’s Usyk, 24-0 (15 KOs) was previously ordered to next face Wardley, 20-0-1 (19 KOs), shortly after the unbeaten Brit’s come-from-behind, 11th round stoppage of New Zealand’s Joseph Parker on October 25 in London. Wardley-Parker was put together, on the promise that the winner would be immediately recognized as Usyk’s next mandatory challenger.
The condition was put in place after Usyk filed an injury exemption when ordered to face Parker, 36-4 (23 KOs) who held the interim title at the time. It proved to be a double whammy for Parker. The former WBO full titleholder who not only lost his place in line but is now under investigation by the British Boxing Board of Control after testing positive for Benzoylecgonine, the main metabolite found in cocaine.
Meanwhile, Wardley will now enter his next fight as a major titleholder after Monday’s actions.
The move marks the second time in as many years that Usyk has parted ways with an alphabet title after fully unifying the division.
Usyk vacated the IBF belt last summer, just one month after he defeated Tyson Fury for the first of two times. His victory over the previously unbeaten Brit last May 18 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia saw Usyk become the first undisputed heavyweight champion since Lennox Lewis achieved the feat in November 1999.
The belts remained fully intact for only five weeks, however. Usyk relinquished the IBF title to allow Daniel Dubois and Anthony Joshua vie for greater stakes than just an interim belt. The move was made at the time so that Usyk could move forward with a far more lucrative rematch with Fury, whom he once again defeated last December in Riyadh.
Dubois gained recognition as the full IBF titlist and cemented his reign with a fifth-round knockout win over Joshua. The title stay lasted only until his next fight, when Dubois suffered a repeat knockout defeat to Usyk on July 19 at Wembley Stadium. Usyk fully unified the titles once again, to become a three-time undisputed champion spanning two divisions.
Prior to his 2019 entry into the heavyweight division, Usyk – a 2012 Olympic gold medalist – held all four major titles at cruiserweight. His remarkable reign began with a September 2016 win over then-unbeaten Krzysztof Glowacki to win the WBO 200lbs title in Gdansk, Poland.
The entirety of Usyk’s cruiserweight title run took place on the road, including thrice dethroning undefeated titleholders (Glowacki, Mairis Briedis and Murat Gassiev) in their home countries.
“A champion of champions… the WBO extends its profound respect, admiration and gratitude to Oleksandr Usyk,” WBO president Gustavo Olivieri said of the unbeaten southpaw. “An undefeated, two-division WBO undisputed world champion and a fighter who has earned an exemplified every right, privilege and honor associated with the WBO Super Champion distinction.
“His career stands as one of the most extraordinary and historic of the modern era. We accept and respect his decision… this is not a farewell but – as expressed by his team – a respectful pause. The doors of the WBO will always remain open to Oleksandr Usyk and his team.”
Next steps were not immediately available regarding Wardley – nor Usyk, for that matter – as this goes to publication.
