Oleksandr Usyk announces start of preparation for Anthony Joshua rematch

As expected, Unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk has officially announced that he’ll leave his native Ukraine to train for his upcoming rematch with Anthony Joshua.

As a father of three, Usyk (19-0, 13 KO) was automatically exempt from the current regulations requiring all able-bodied men between 18-60 to join Ukraine’s armed services.

Joshua (24-2, 22 KO), whom Usyk soundly outboxed last September to claim the IBF, WBO, and WBA titles, had been searching for a potential alternate foe in case the planned summer date fell through. That’s now unnecessary, and with the timetable back to its original state, there’s a good chance we could see an undisputed heavyweight title fight before year’s end.

Best of luck to Usyk in getting to safety. We’ll bring you more info once we have a concrete date; Eddie Hearn recently told iFL TV that they were targeting June, but it wouldn’t be at all surprising to see them push it back a bit to give Usyk more time to re-acclimate to the gym.