#oleksandr-usyk

#oleksandr-usyk

Daniel Dubois completed his latest resurgence with brutal efficiency when he became the WBO world heavyweight champion after stopping Fabio Wardley early in the 11th round of a dramatic and blood-soaked contest. Howard Foster, whose pale blue shirt had turned crimson as if he worked in an abattoir rather than in a boxing ring as a referee, jumped between the courageous fighters to rescue Wardley 28 seconds into the penultimate round. It was a merciful stoppage because the fallen champion, with his face a mask of blood pouring from his badly cut and broken nose, had been examined twice before by the ringside doctor.

Wilder, previously WBC world champion and one of heavyweight boxing's most feared, has struggled since losing his trilogy fight with Tyson Fury. The American has since suffered back-to-back stoppage defeats to Joseph Parker in 2023 and Zhilei Zhang in 2024, taking a year out before returning with a seventh-round win against little-known Tyrrell Anthony Herndon. But despite his status slipping, Usyk still sees the Bronze Bomber as a marquee name for his next bout.