Oleksandr Usyk (7-0, KO 7) of the Ukraine outworked his Russian opponent Andrey Knyazev (11-2) in the main event of a K2 promotions show in the Sports Palace in Kiev, Ukraine under the watchful eye of the city mayor Vitali Klitschko.
Usyk won the WBO Inter-Continental cruiser weight title and his 3rd place in the WBO rankings suggests a showdown with cruiser weight king Marco Huck (Muamer Hukić) in the near future. Tony Bellew and Krzytof Glowacki occupy the top two spots but getting past them should be a formality for Usyk.
Usyk, a tall and technical southpaw, used a lot of footwork and lateral movement against the game Knyazev who was out of his depth against the Olympic gold level of skill of the Ukrainian. Usyk who uses a wide upright stance with a high guard worked from long range and did not let Knyazev into the fight at all using a variety of shots and combinations. Notably Oleksandr threw shots while he was on the move and sometimes punched while moving backwards without pausing for the punch. He is a very mobile cruiser weight with remarkable hand speed and throws an overwhelming number of shots for this division.
He is definitely lacking a little in the power department, he did not put Knyazev down for the TKO although he landed at will and threw a cannonade of power punches and the referee waved off the carnage with the Russian on his feet and complaining about the stoppage. The ref did the right thing as Knyazev’s face was a bloody mess and he was simply toughing out a heinous beating without any chance of winning.
Perhaps Usyk does not punch his weight but his skill, height and southpaw stance compensate the deficit and still make him a prime candidate for toppling WBO champ Marko Huck. The Ukrainian boxer may not punch hard enough to move up to heavyweight and succeed his countryman and current employer Wladimir Klitschko so he may have to defend the cruiser weight trenches. He will have a hard time and Huck is the least of his problems, there is a whole platoon of Russian boxers reeking havoc in the weight class. Two of them hold the WBC and WBA titles but there are up and comers whose ruthless march should make the champs feel at least a little insecure.
