Ukrainian boxer Oleksandr Usyk has just added another British name to his list of victims. The ferocious fighter defeated Daniel Dubois at Wembley Stadium over the weekend to become a three-time undisputed heavyweight champion.
he has only fought British boxers in his last seven fights
Dubois is now the fourth British opponent Usyk has defeated in his last seven fights. In fact, he has only fought British boxers in his last seven fights, including first and second fights against both Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury, and Dubois, all of which he won.
While Usyk is an undeniably exceptional boxer, he has not always been the favorite. If you placed a $10 bet on him to win all of his last five fights, you would have made around $312 after he knocked out Dubois in the fifth round in his most recent bout. A Usyk vs the British accumulator would have earned you +3120 odds based on the prices just before each bout began.
Check out Usyk’s journey to conquer the British over the past five years.
2020 Chisora vs Usyk
-714
Derek Chisora is a household name in the world of British boxing. He has fought just about every major heavyweight fighter on the scene, and his bouts are typically crowd-pleasing slug fests with less focus on technique and more on knocking an opponent’s lights out.
His fight against Usyk in October 2020 proved a little different, however. It took place at the SSE Arena in London and Usyk, who had a spotless record of 17 wins and 0 losses at the time, came in as hot favorite at -714. Chisora had lost 9 times before this point.
Usyk won the bout by unanimous decision after 12 rounds. The Ukrainain landed 194 of his 674 punches thrown, while Chisora landed 139 of his 625. As he concluded his post-fight interview, Usyk declare that he wanted to fight Joshua next. “I’m coming for you Anthony,” he said.
Chisora and Usyk shard a comical moment in the aftermath of his most recent demolition of Dubois over the weekend:
2021 Joshua vs Usyk I
+222
Usyk continued on his journey to conquer the British by taking on Anthony Joshua, a bout which took place in September 2021 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London.
Since he hadn’t fought in heavyweight, Usyk was +222 outsider to win
At the time, Anthony Joshua came into the fight as unified WBA, IBF, WBO, and IBO heavyweight champion after defeating Mexican Andy Ruiz in a rematch in 2019. Meanwhile, Usyk was undisputed cruiserweight champion and had only decided to move up into heavyweight in 2019. He was +222 outsider to beat Joshua.
Ultimately, Usyk defeated Joshua by unanimous decision, landing 148 punches to Joshua’s 123. He was also more precise, landing 28% more punches than his opponent. Joshua’s team immediately triggered a rematch clause, setting up the next fight in 2022.
2022 Joshua vs Usyk II
-188
By defeating Joshua in 2021, Usyk became only the third boxer in history to win world titles in both cruiserweight and heavyweight, joining Evander Holyfield and David Haye on the list. Since putting on a dominant display against Joshua in fight one, Usyk was -188 favorite in fight two.
The second fight placed Joshua a little more outside his comfort zone, ditching his hometown of London for the sandy dunes of Jeddah in Saudi Arabia. The Rage on the Red Sea took place in August 2022.
Usyk won again, but this time by split decision. Joshua improved, but it wasn’t enough to defeat the Ukrainian, who again landed more punches overall, landing 170 of the 712 thrown.
The aftermath of the fight is now the stuff of legend. Joshua threw the title belts out of the ring before making to storm out of the arena. However, the Brit returned to the ring, only to the grab the mic and proceed to give one of the strangest post-fight speeches in boxing history:
2023 Dubois vs Usyk I
-1250
The first matchup between Dubois and Usyk is the biggest mismatch in our list. For a start, Usyk entered the ring with Dubois as -1250 to take the victory. It took place in Wroclaw in Poland, making it the closest to home Usyk has been for any of his seven previous fights.
Although the fight resulted in a dominant win by the Ukrainian, it also wasn’t without its controversy. Usyk was downed by Dubois in the fifth round, but the punch was ruled a low blow by the ref. The ref then gave Usyk five minutes to recover, of which he used around four. Dubois argued that it was not a low blow in his post-fight interview.
Nevertheless, the fight ended with another win for Usyk and paved the way for a matchup with another Brit.
2024 Fury vs Usyk I
+123
Next up to the ring, it’s Morecambe man Tyson Fury. The Gypsy King arrived at his fight with Usyk having just defeated former UFC Heavyweight Champion Francis Ngannou decisively, although with more difficulty than he expected.
The fight, dubbed the Ring of Fire, took place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in May 2024. Given his pre fight-record of 34 wins, 0 losses, and just 1 draw, Fury arrived at the fight as rank favorite, while Usyk with 21 wins, 0 losses and draws, was outsider at +123.
Fury actually landed more punches but Usyk was more precise
The fight began with some showboating by a confident Fury, although it wasn’t long before Usyk’s professionalism and power put him on top. Usyk defeated Fury by a split decision, although Fury of course contested that he had won the bout. Fury actually landed more punches but Usyk was more precise with the punches he did throw.
This set up a second fight between the pair the same year.
2024 Fury vs Usyk II
-137
Usyk turned the tables in his first fight against Fury, and as a result bookmakers priced him as -137 favorite going into the rematch. This took place in December 2024 again in Saudi Arabia. The total purse supposedly amounted to around $190m.
Fury seemed more composed and determined heading into the second fight with Usyk. There was no more showboating, only strategic boxing from both men. However, it still wasn’t enough for the Brit. Usyk defeated Fury by unanimous decision this time after dominating in the second half of the fight.
Fury, who entered the ring for the first time with Usyk with no losses, has now only ever lost to the Ukrainian. He announced his boxing retirement shortly after the fight in January and has not fought since. Nevertheless, Usyk described Fury as “a great fighter” and a “great opponent” following the two fights.
2025 Dubois vs Usyk II
-300
It wasn’t long after the referee raised Usyk’s arm in victory in December 2024 that a familiar face decided to step into the ring to challenge the Ukrainain. Thinking he might have what it takes to finally beat the heavyweight champion, Dubois climbed into the ring and called for a rematch.
Dubois had two losses to his name in his 25 fights as a professional
Heading into the fight with a spotless record of 23 wins and no losses, Usyk was firm favorite. Meanwhile, Dubois had two losses to his name in his 25 fights as a professional. Sportsbooks priced Usyk as -300 favorite to win.
The BBC headline “Usyk destroys Dubois to reclaim undisputed crown” really encapsulates how the most recent British challenge went. Fighting in front of 90,000 boxing fans at Wembley Stadium over the weekend, Usyk knocked down Dubois twice in the fifth round, the latter time bringing an end to Dubois’ night.
Usyk claimed another British soul (for the second time) and has fully cemented his position among the all-time greats of heavyweight boxing. Long may it continue!
