Usyk still undisputed, but ordered to fight Parker-Wardley winner next

The road to the undisputed championship in modern heavyweight boxing is labyrinthine, littered with pitfalls, stumbling blocks, and the hardest punchers on the planet.

But Oleksandr Usyk has proven himself to be unquestionably the best fighter in the division after beating Tyson Fury twice, as well as holding two victories over both Anthony Joshua and Daniel Dubois too.

Usyk holds all four of the major heavyweight titles. He is due to make a mandatory defence of the WBO belt next, but the WBO have granted Usyk a 90 day extension on medical grounds before he has to enter those negotiations.

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But the WBO have ruled that he must box their mandatory challenger next, with no other bout in the interim. That mandatory challenger will be the winner of Joseph Parker's October 25 heavyweight contest with Fabio Wardley in London.

Who is the champion?

Ukraine's Oleksandr Usyk is the undisputed heavyweight world champion. The Olympic gold medallist became an undisputed champion first at cruiserweight. He began his heavyweight title reign when he outpointed Anthony Joshua at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in 2021, picking up the WBO, WBA and IBF championships. He defended those belts in a rematch with Joshua and with his first victory over Daniel Dubois.

That set him up for his momentous undisputed title clash last year with Tyson Fury, then the WBC heavyweight titlist. Usyk shook Fury badly in the ninth round and won a split decision.

He became the first undisputed heavyweight world champion since Lennox Lewis in 1999 and the first of the four-belt era.

Contracted for a rematch, Usyk took a unanimous decision win over Fury in their second fight in December.

By then though Usyk had been forced to shed a belt. His commitment to the Fury rematch meant he could not make a mandatory defence of the IBF title. He vacated and Dubois was elevated to full IBF world champion without throwing a punch.

Dubois though validated his status as a world champion when he brutally knocked out Joshua at Wembley Stadium last September.

Usyk then beat Dubois a second time when he spectacularly knocked out the Briton at Wembley Stadium on July 19 to become a two-time undisputed heavyweight champion, a feat that will go down in the history books.

He is an iconic figure in his homeland, a symbol of Ukrainian resistance during Russia's invasion of the country.

"Ukraine needs victories now more than ever. We were incredibly moved by the support from our fellow Ukrainians - especially those on the frontlines," Sergey Lapin, the CEO of Usyk's promotional company Ready To Fight, said.

"It means a lot to Oleksandr to lift the national spirit in the midst of nightly missile strikes and intense battles."

Who will Usyk fight next?

To remain the undisputed champion, Usyk would have to fight the winner of the Joseph Parker-Fabio Wardley bout next, though he could always vacate the WBO belt if he wanted to go in another direction.

Parker has been on a great run of form, beating both Deontay Wilder and Zhilei Zhang to become the WBO interim titlist. He was due to challenge Dubois for the IBF championship but when Dubois fell ill, mere days before the bout, Parker knocked out short-notice replacement Martin Bakole.

Parker told Sky Sports: "If he [Usyk] wants to have one final fight after Dubois, please make it me. I know there's other big fights out there that he wants, bigger money fights, but I'd love the opportunity to challenge myself against the best in the world."

Wardley is the WBA's Interim heavyweight titlist. He knocked out Frazer Clarke in the first round of their rematch last year. He struggled with Justis Huni in his most recent bout, but found the finish when he needed it.

Will Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury return?

All the signs are that former champions Joshua and Fury intend to return to competition at the top end of the heavyweight division.

Joshua hasn't boxed since his heavy defeat to Dubois. The idea of a Dubois rematch, boldly floated in the immediate aftermath of the first fight, has faded but Joshua's hopes of boxing his great rival Fury were hit when, at the start of this year, Fury declared he had retired.

But Fury has vacillated publicly over whether he will stay retired. He wouldn't be able to box this year but a return next year is possible.

Joshua is also unlikely to box in 2025. His team are anticipating a lower level comeback bout early next year before a "roll of the dice" type blockbuster in the summer that they're hoping will be against Fury.

Who are the other heavyweight contenders?

To keep highly ranked heavyweights active the world title sanctioning bodies have created a slew of secondary belts, that in effect help decide their mandatory contenders.

The over-generous WBA have a 'regular' heavyweight champion in Kubrat Pulev, an Interim titlist in Wardley as well as their full or 'super' champion Usyk.

Agit Kabayel holds the WBC's Interim strap, but a WBC mandatory challenger has not yet been set.

The IBF have ordered Frank Sanchez to face Efe Ajagba in an eliminator, with the winner becoming mandatory challenger for their heavyweight title.

Who is the heavyweight to watch?

Britain has a fast-rising star in Moses Itauma. Still only 20, the young heavyweight had a fearsome reputation as an amateur at Youth and Junior level. He sparred fighters like Joshua and Lawrence Okolie when he was just a schoolboy himself.

He's blazed through his professional opposition so far, dazzling for instance when he took out Demsey McKean in just under two minutes on the undercard of the Usyk-Fury rematch and smashing Dillian Whyte in just a round in August. He will be in action once again before the end of 2025.