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Fabio Wardley could secure a world heavyweight title unification with Oleksandr Usyk, but only after “proving himself at the highest level”.
Wardley first put himself in the frame to challenge Usyk after defeating Joseph Parker last year to clinch the WBO interim title.
Usyk however has relinquished the full WBO championship, still holding the WBC, WBA and IBF belts to pursue other options. Next month the undefeated Ukrainian will box kickboxing superstar Rico Verhoeven in Giza.
Wardley has been promoted to WBO world champion and will box Daniel Daniels in Manchester this weekend.
But Usyk is still open to a future fight with the hard-hitting Briton. said Sergey Lapin, chief executive of USIC’s promotional agency Ready to Fight Sky Sports: “If Fabio Wardley proves himself at the highest level, he can certainly be part of that conversation.”
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Watch old enemies become friends and share laughs as Usyk helps Anthony Joshua train (Video courtesy of Oleksandr Usykaa – Instagram @usykaa with @antonyjoshua)
Beating Dubois, the former IBF titlist who knocked out Anthony Joshua, could be an ideal way for Wardley to set up a Usic fight.
“Becoming the three-time undisputed heavyweight champion would be something historic, and Oleksandr is always motivated by the biggest challenge,” noted Lapin.
“At the same time, we don’t build our plans around one name or one result. There are several strong contenders in the division and we focus on the biggest and most meaningful fights available.”
In addition to unifying the WBO title, Usyk could also consider meeting the increasingly popular German heavyweight, Agit Kabayel, who is the mandatory challenger for the WBC heavyweight championship, for his next fight.
“If it’s Fabio Wardley, it could potentially be undisputed. If it’s Ajit Kabael, it’ll probably be a title defence,” Lapine said.
“But we don’t like to look too far ahead. At the moment, we have a fight with Rico Verhoeven, and all our focus is on that.”
Olympic gold medalist Usyk is undefeated as a professional. He is already the undisputed champion at cruiserweight and twice undisputed at heavyweight. His record of achievements in the present era is virtually unmatched.
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Boxing coach Gary Logan breaks down the keys to victory for Fabio Wardley and Daniel Dubois in their WBO heavyweight clash on Sunday
“Alexander has already achieved what very few fighters in history have done, so now it’s not about chasing the title,” Lapin explained.
“For many years Oleksandr took fights based primarily on sporting value, often without paying attention to business. He was building his legacy.
“Now it’s different. At this stage, both sports and business are important.”
Lapine added: “He wants to make a lasting impact on the sport and help grow the next generation of fighters through projects like Ready to Fight.
“What drives him is the pursuit of greatness in the larger sense – taking on the biggest challenges available, being at the highest level and testing himself against top competition.”
