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3 possible next opponents for Oleksandr Usyk

Here's who we think Oleksandr Usyk should fight after handing Tyson Fury his first loss.

By Hector Franco

Tyson Fury v Oleksandr Usyk: Ring Of Fire - Fight Night
Tyson Fury v Oleksandr Usyk: Ring Of Fire - Fight Night / Richard Pelham/GettyImages
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The fight for the undisputed heavyweight championship of the world proved to be one of the best of 2024. In a fight filled with momentum shifts, with each fighter having their moments of advantage, it came down to the judge's scorecards. In a slight upset, Oleksandr Usyk (22-0, 14 KOs) won a split decision over Tyson Fury (34-1-1, 24 KOs) to become the undisputed heavyweight champion, now adding the lineal and WBC heavyweight titles to his ledger. 

The judges scored the tightly contested bout 114-113 and 115-112 for Usyk, with one judge having Fury the victor with a score of 114-113. 

Usyk's victory put him in rare company, joining Evander Holyfield as the only fighters to be undisputed champions at cruiserweight and heavyweight. After cleaning out one of the most highly regarded cruiserweight eras, Usyk now holds wins over the two premier heavyweights of the last decade: Anthony Joshua and Fury. He has the distinction of being the first undisputed heavyweight champion in the four-belt era. 

There are three fighters in which a case can be made to be listed as the number one pound-for-pound boxer. Those fighters are Terence Crawford, Naoya Inoue, and Usyk. The win over Fury for Usyk gives him a clear advantage over the aforementioned two as the former Olympic gold medalist won as an underdog against a fighter who outweighed him by more than 30 pounds. At least until Crawford returns this upcoming August, the pound-for-pound debate should have Usyk at the top by a margin. 

"Man ya'll better some respect on Usyk, man," Crawford stated on social after Usyk's historic win over Fury. "He's definitely a candidate for #1 P4P fighter in the world. I'm no hater. He beat the man that beat the man in a bigger division, giving what he's already done. Salute brother!" 

Usyk has conquered the proverbial boxing mountain now that he has become the undisputed heavyweight champion. But there are still fights available for him should he choose to continue fighting, and he hasn't given any indication that he will stop anytime soon.

Fansided MMA will look at three opponents that could be next for Usyk.

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