Badou Jack could push for a fight with Oleksandr Usyk.
That is according to his manager Amer Abdallah. Jack has not boxed since knocking out Ilunga Makabu to become the WBC Cruiserweight Champion last year. The 41-year-old upset the odds of becoming a champion at this late stage of his career. That was his sixth consecutive win. At this late stage of his career, he will be looking to cash out. Usyk has just secured his second win against Tyson Fury. Usyk beat him via a unanimous decision to show he is the best heavyweight of this generation. He has completed boxing by becoming undisputed at cruiserweight and heavyweight.
He will take some time off before deciding what he will do next. But reports indicate that he could move down to cruiserweight. If that is the case, Jack could be a target. His age, good relationship with Usyk’s camp and a world title offer the Ukrainian something. It also allows Usyk to put himself in a quick position to chase undisputed at cruiserweight again if that is driving him. Abdallah made it clear that this was the aim after Jack’s plan to go to bridgerweight did not work out.
Jack’s aim
“After Badou won his third division title in February, 2023, when he dethroned Makabu in Saudi Arabia, the next step was to move up to a fourth division at bridgerweight with the WBC. We paid a step-aside fee to the mandatory challenger, who was Kevin Lerena, so that Badou could fight Ryan Rozicki for the bridgerweight title
“That fight was agreed on. We tried to land the fight in a couple places, but the fight never came to fruition. Usyk was one of the potential guys. Usyk is not a big heavyweight. Badou fighting a guy like Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua, or Deontay Wilder didn’t make much sense, size-wise. But Usyk did make sense. So, Usyk has always been in that conversation for Badou’s next fight.
“Now, once the bridgerweight opportunity didn’t come to fruition, and with Usyk looking to come back down to cruiserweight, I think that would be a great fight. I’d love the opportunity. It’s a legacy fight. Who wouldn’t want to share the ring with him?,” Abdallah said
But Usyk must weigh up whether it is worth taking a risk. He has slowed down compared to what he used to be, which is understandable since ‘Father Time’ catches up with everyone. Usyk also may not be the same if he comes back down. Fighters have shown in the late stages of their career that coming down in weight is more difficult.
Roy Jones Jr was never the same when he came down from heavyweight after beating John Ruiz. That set the narrative for his downfall, as he suffered more losses than he should have. And after having earned more than $100 million for the two Fury fights, Usyk is not under pressure to take risky fights.
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