Oleksandr has already had 10 fights in a row outside of Ukraine
Scheduled for August 20 in Saudi Jeddah, the fight for the WBA / WBO / IBF / IBO heavyweight championship belts between the title holder Oleksandr Usyk and Anthony Joshua will be the 11th in a row for the Ukrainian boxer, which he will hold outside of Ukraine. More often than Usyk outside his native country, no one has fought from the top 10 heavyweight rankings. And only two now ex-world champions have more title fights over the past six and a half years.
Usyk: seven years outside Ukraine
The last time Usyk fought in his native country was in December 2015, defeating Pedro Rodriguez. Since then, Alexander has had 10 fights, eight of which were title fights. Usik spent three fights in the USA and Great Britain, one each in Germany, Poland, Latvia and Russia. It is noteworthy that the Ukrainian won all his belts both in cruiserweight and heavyweight in guest fights.
Chisora and Parker are the most active
The largest number of fights over the past six and a half years from the top 10 of the current heavyweight rankings (based on BoxRec data) were held by Derek Chisora and Joseph Parker – 15 each. True, the first in this segment had no title fights at all (we take into account full-fledged championship fights), the second had only four. Dillian Whyte, who had 14 fights in a similar period, had three title fights.
And the least fights in six and a half years were held by the reigning WBC world champion Tyson Fury – eight, of which six were titles. True, we must take into account that the Gypsy King did not enter the ring for a long time due to depression, problems with doping and drugs.
Joshua and Wilder are the leaders in title fights
The greatest number of title fights for the segment we have cited were now former WBC world champion Deontay Wilder and former WBA / WBO / IBF / IBO title holder Anthony Joshua. The American fought 10 times in title fights in six and a half years, the Briton 11. Wilder won seven fights, lost two and ended in a draw. Joshua has eight wins and two losses.
Best winning streak – Joyce
The seventh-ranked British heavyweight has made 13 fights in four and a half years. All won. True, it should be noted that, breaking into the elite of the division, Joyce had to fight very often – in 2018, for example, he had six fights, and the level of opposition, of course, could not be compared with the rivals of other fighters. Although, Stivern, Jenning, Takama and Dubois Joyce won.
Tyson Fury – 8 fights. Six titles. Five fights – in the US, three – in the UK. Won everything.
Oleksandr Usyk – 10 fights. Eight titles. Three fights each – in the USA and Great Britain, one each – in Poland, Germany, Latvia and Russia. Won everything.
Deontay Wilder – 10 fights. 10 – title. All are in the USA. Seven won, two lost, one ended in a draw.
Anthony Joshua – 11 fights. 11 – title. Nine – won, two – lost. Nine fights – in Great Britain, one – in the USA, one – in Saudi Arabia.
Dillian Whyte – 14 fights. Three are titles. 11 fights – in the UK, one each – in the USA, Gibraltar and Saudi Arabia. 13 fights won, two – lost.
Joseph Parker – 15 fights. Four are titles. Seven fights – in New Zealand, five – in the UK, two – in the US, one – in Samoa. 13 fights won, two – lost.
Joe Joyce – 13 fights. Not a single title. All are in the UK. All won.
Michael Hunter – 13 fights. Not a single title. 11 fights – in the USA, one – in Poland, one – in Saudi Arabia. 10 – won, one – lost, two fights ended in a draw.
Derek Chisora - 15 fights. Not a single title. 11 fights – in the UK, two – in Germany, one each – in Sweden and Poland. Eight – won, seven – lost.
Luis Ortiz – 11 fights. Not a single title. Nine fights in the USA, one in Poland, one in Britain.
Source: Sportarena
I am Sandra Jackson, a journalist and content creator with extensive experience in the news industry. I have been working in the news media for over five years. During this time, I have worked as an author and editor at various outlets producing high-quality content that attracts readers from different demographics.
