FURY SHOCKED: WHY DID USYK VACATE HIS IBF BELT?
Oleksandr Usyk has officially vacated his IBF world heavyweight title, allowing Daniel Dubois and Anthony Joshua to fight for it in September. The decision comes just five weeks after Usyk became the first heavyweight to hold all four major belts – IBF, WBO, WBA, and WBC – by defeating Tyson Fury in Saudi Arabia.
In a video posted on social media, Usyk referred to vacating the IBF title as his “present” to Dubois and Joshua. “Anthony and Daniel, listen. I know the IBF title is important to you. It is my present to you on 21 September,” Usyk said. The video was captioned: “The world loves strong. Your friend, Undisputed Heavyweight Champion of the World, Oleksandr Usyk.”
With Usyk now committed to a rematch with Fury, he is unable to defend the IBF crown against Dubois, who is the interim champion and mandatory challenger. This development means Dubois’ anticipated September 21 bout against Joshua at Wembley Stadium is now likely to become a world title fight.
Usyk had reportedly requested to retain the IBF belt until December to ensure his expected rematch with Fury would be another fight for the undisputed title. However, IBF rules stipulated that he would be stripped of the title unless he fought Dubois first. Thus, Usyk chose to vacate the title voluntarily.
Usyk completed his collection of world titles with a split-decision victory over Fury on May 18, adding Fury’s WBC belt to his WBA, IBF, and WBO titles. He initially claimed the latter three titles from Joshua with a stunning win at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in September 2021 and later defended them against Joshua in Jeddah in August 2022.
After his successful defense against Joshua, Usyk fought Dubois in Wroclaw, securing a knockout victory in the ninth round, which set up his first unifying fight against Fury.
Since his loss to Usyk, Dubois has been on a winning streak, defeating Jarrell Miller and Filip Hrgovic, both by knockout. Joshua, on the other hand, has had an impressive run, beating Jermaine Franklin, Robert Helenius, and Otto Wallin last year before knocking out Francis Ngannou inside two rounds in Riyadh this March.
The stage is now set for what promises to be an electrifying showdown between Joshua and Dubois, with the IBF world heavyweight title on the line. This fight is not just a battle for the belt but a chance for both fighters to prove themselves on the world stage once again.
