Usik, Alexander Alexandrovich

Mother - Nadezhda Petrovna comes from the Chernihiv region, and father Alexander Anatolyevich from Sumy region ^{[15] [16]} .

Alexander Alexandrovich Usik was born on January 17, 1987 in Simferopol . Until 1999, he lived in his mother’s homeland in the village of Rybotin, Chernihiv Oblast ^[17] .

He graduated from Simferopol school number 34, in which he studied with his future wife Catherine ^[18] . In childhood, he was engaged in folk dances , judo and football . He played for the youth team " Tavria " in the position of the left midfielder . Usik came to the boxing section at the age of 15. He studied under the guidance of coach Sergey Lapin together with his son, Sergey Lapin, Jr., just like Usyk, who later won the title of Ukrainian boxing champion.

“At the very first training I got it in full. It hit me. I had to do twice as much. I came at three and left at seven. The first successes appeared, and I fell in love with this business. Many guys laughed at my “hangs” in the hall. But the one who laughs last laughs. "

Graduated from Lviv State University of Physical Education ^[19] .

International Championships

• 2005. He performed in average weight (up to 75 kg). Winner of the international youth tournament in Budapest (Hungary), participant of the European Youth Championship in Tallinn (Estonia). Silver medalist at the Debrecen Tournament (Hungary).
• 2006. He performed in average weight (up to 75 kg). Bronze medalist of the European Championship. He defeated Bad Jack , lost in the semifinals to Russian Matvey Korobov .
• 2008. He performed in light heavyweight (up to 81 kg). Winner of the Strandja Cup in Plovdiv (Bulgaria), defeated Russian Dmitry Chudinov in the final. He won a license for the Olympics In February 2008 he was sent by the Olympic Committee in Roseto degli Abruzzi , replacing Denis Poyaziku . But he participated already in the heavy weight category (up to 91 kg). There he defeated world-class boxers, Azerbaijani Elchin Alizade and Briton . He took part in the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. In the first round, Alexander easily defeated boxer from China (23: 4), and in the second round he lost to the future silver medalist, Italian Clemente Russo (4: 7). After the defeat at the Olympics, Alexander went down to light heavyweight and won the 2008 European Championship in Liverpool. In the same year he again moved to the heavy weight category. He took a silver medal at the 2008 World Cup Championships .
• 2009. Moved to heavy weight (up to 91 kg). Winner of the international tournament in Odessa. In 2009, he participated in the 2009 World Cup . He took a bronze medal on it, losing in the semifinals to the Russian Egor Mekhontsev . The winner of the international tournament Makara Mazay in Mariupol.
• 2011. Silver medalist of the tournament Nikolai Manger in Kherson, lost to Belarus Sergey Korneev . The winner of the international tournament Makara Mazay in Mariupol, in the final defeated the Kazakh boxer, Vasily Levit . Participated in the World Cup , the Russian defeated Arthur Beterbiev , and in the final he defeated the boxer from Azerbaijan Teymur Mammadov and won the gold medal.
• 2012. He won gold at the tournament of Nikolai Manger in Kherson.
• The leader of the heavyweights rating according to AIBA 2011-2012 ^[20] .

2012 Olympics

• 1/8 finals - passed automatically
• 1/4 finals - defeated Arthur Beterbiev (Russia) 17:13
• 1/2 finals - Tervel Puleva (Bulgaria) defeated 21: 5
• final - defeated Clemente Russo (Italy) 14:11

In 2008, Usyk begins to study with the father of his friend and in the future, Vasily Lomachenko’s godfather - Anatoly Lomachenko , under whose leadership he lost only one fight at the 2009 World Championships in Milan, where he lost to the Russian Egor Mekhontsev in the semifinals.

The first major success was the victory at the 2011 World Cup, where Usyk defeated Bulgarian Tervel Pulev, Russian Arthur Berterbiev, Belarusian Sergei Korneev, and Timur Mammadov, Azerbaijani in the final fight.

Usik rode to the London Olympic Games as the captain of the national team and one of the main favorites of the Games, which he confirmed, taking turns winning the same Arthur Beterbiev and Tervel Pulev, and defeating the Italian boxer Clemente Russo 14:11 in the final fight. And then there was the famous hopak ^[21] in the ring.

Championships of Ukraine

• 2006. Gold. (2 middle category, up to 75 kg.)
• 2009. Gold. (Heavy weight category, up to 91 kg.) Defeated Sergey Pivovarenko, Sergey Melnik and Denis Poyazik .
• 2010. Gold. (Heavy weight category, up to 91 kg.) Eugene Koltik, Ivan Butko, Alexander Yazin and Denis Poyazik won.
• 2011. Gold. (Heavy weight category, up to 91 kg.) Demetrius Vichuk, Vladimir Maslov, Alexander Yazin and Sergey Melnik defeated.

Team international tournaments

• 2006 Tournament in Baku (Ukraine-Africa) (Average weight category, up to 75 kg.) Defeat by Mohamed Heykal, Egypt (8:17)
• 2006 Tournament in Baku (Ukraine-China) (Middle weight category, up to 75 kg.) Victory over Lu Yupin (21: 8)
• 2007 Tournament in Kaliningrad (Ukraine-Azerbaijan) (Light heavyweight category, up to 81 kg.) Won by Yavir Tagiyev (18: 4)
• 2007 Tournament in Kaliningrad (Ukraine-Russia) (Light heavyweight category, up to 81 kg.) Lost to Arthur Beterbiev (10:12)
• 2007 Tournament in Kaliningrad (Ukraine-Uzbekistan) (Light heavyweight category, up to 81 kg.) Defeated Utkir Saipov (17: 7)
• 2010 Tournament in Villeryu (Ukraine-France) (Heavyweight category, up to 91 kg.) Defeated by Arsen Goulaminyan (12: 1)
• 2010 Tournament in Agen (Ukraine-France) (Heavyweight category, up to 91 kg.) Defeated by Arsen Goulaminyan (8: 0)

The triumph of the Olympics was overshadowed by the death of his father, Alexander Usik Sr., who died of a heart attack, and did not wait for his son to return after the Olympics. Perhaps the death of his father became one of the factors in the continuation of Usik's career - he did not see himself in amateur boxing, for success in the professionals he had to leave for America, and he could not leave his family.

As a result, Usyk signed a contract with the created team of the World Series of Boxing by Ukrainian atamans, for whom he debuted on January 11 in Kiev with a victory over the British Fa.

Usyk’s performance in the WSB project was very successful - he defeated all six of his opponents, including German Eric Brechlin, Briton Joseph Joyce, Italian Matteo Modugno and Romanian Mihai Nistor.

Early career

Alexander Usik decided to go professional and sign a contract with the company of Klitschko brothers K2 Promotions . Usyk considered various offers of promoters, was in negotiations in England and the USA, but in the end he settled on the option with K2 Promotions. Not least, the choice was influenced by the fact that Usik will not need to leave Ukraine for a long time ^[22] .

On November 9, 2013, the debut match of Usik took place, in which he knocked out four-time Mexican champion Felipe Romero. In the first round, Usyk confidently checked the Mexican couple of times, hit him well in the head, and even managed to correct the pigtail that Romero brushed off. The second round was again held with the advantage of the Ukrainian boxer. In the fifth round, it was all over - a clear blow to the left of the jaw and the coach threw out a towel.

December 14, 2013 Usyk had a duel with the Colombian Epifanio Mendoza. Before this fight, Mendoza had 34 wins and 1 draw in 50 fights (including 30 knockout wins ). However, the experience of Mendoza did not help him withstand the battle with Alexander Usik. The boxer in the second and third three-minute sent Mendoza to the knockdown. And in the fourth round, after a series of successful strikes by Usyk, the bout referee stopped the fight.

The third battle, Alexander held on April 26, 2014 outside of Ukraine. In Germany, on the undercard of the battle of Wladimir Klitschko with Alex Leapai , Usyk knocked out Ben Gsafoa of the Ghanaian descent in the third round. Opponent of Alexander Usik, German Ben Nsafoa, lasted only two full rounds. In the third round, Alexander Usik first knocked down his opponent, and then Ben put him on the floor with an accurate blow to the jaw.

In the fourth fight, which took place in Odessa on May 31, 2014, Alexander knocked out two-time Argentinean champion Cesar David Krens. In the 3rd round, Usyk sent Krens down. The fight ended in the 4th round with the victory of the Ukrainian boxer.

Conquering and defending the WBO Intercontinental Title

On October 4, 2014, Usyk held a duel, which became the main event at the Arena Lviv stadium. Usyk defeated South African boxer Daniel Brewer by heavy knockout at the end of the 7th round and won his first regional title - interim champion in the WBO Inter-Continental ^[23] .

On December 13, 2014, Usyk entered the ring with the strongest opponent in his career at this point, South African Dani Venter. Dani showed decent resistance and even won several rounds in the first half of the fight. From the fifth round, Usyk healed Venter and convincingly took the endings of these rounds in each of the subsequent rounds. Dani successfully recovered during the break, and this lasted until the ninth round, in which Usyk knocked out Venter with a multi-hit combination ^[24] .

On April 18, 2015, Usyk defeated Russian boxer Andrei Knyazev by technical knockout in Kiev and defended his WBO regional title.

On August 29, 2015, Osik's rival was another South African - Johnny Muller. in the first round, the Ukrainian indicated his advantage in choosing a position and, having captured the center of the ring, began to fight with the help of jabs. A 24-year-old guest from South Africa tried to respond with the same jabs, but the Ukrainian left them. True, in the second three-minute period he still missed the right straight forward. As a result, the judge stopped the fight when it became clear that Mueller had too much damage.

December 12, 2015, Alexander Usik defended the title of intercontinental champion according to the WBO. Usyk in this battle won his ninth victory in the professional ring. All by knockout. And Rodriguez suffered a second defeat in his career ^[25] .

March 30, 2016 it became known that at one of the sparings during the preparation for the battle against the British Stephen Simmons Alexander got a leg injury. The fight, scheduled for April 23, 2016, was canceled. ^[26]

Conquering and defending a world title

Champion fight with Krzysztof Glowacki

On September 17, 2016, he met with the World Heavyweight Champion according to the WBO , who did not have defeats by Pole Krzysztof Głowacki . Most of the battle Glovatsky went forward, trying to put pressure on the applicant. Usyk worked on counterattacks and tried not to get involved in the “cabin”. The Pole increased the pace of the battle from round to round, but the ropes failed to catch and lock the opponent. The Ukrainian athlete met his opponent well with a jab, and he walked away from the champion’s attacks on his feet. In general, the antenna was noticeably faster and more accurate. The fight lasted all 12 rounds. The judges unanimously gave the victory to Alexander. Official score: 119-109 and 117-111 (twice) ^{[27] [28] [29]} . Usyk broke the record of the American Evander Holyfield , becoming the world champion in the 1st heavyweight in the 10th fight in the professional ring (Holyfield became the champion in 1986 in his 12th fight) ^[30] .

On December 17, 2016, Usik knocked out Tabiso Mchunu in the 9th round of the South African. The first two rounds went with the advantage of an African boxer, but Usyk quickly leveled the fight in his favor. This fight was the debut of Usyk in the United States ^[31] .

On April 8, 2017 in the United States, Mustache defeated American Michael Hunter on points. In the 12th round, the referee counted the American a standing knockdown. As in the previous match, Usyk allowed the opponent to work out the starting rounds, so that the fight was more open in nature ^[32] .

World Boxing Super Series Tournament

On August 26, 2017, the third defense of the title of Alexander Usik was planned in Odessa , but soon there was information about the establishment of a unique tournament in the first heavyweight - World Boxing Super Series . Usik's team gave preference to the tournament. In addition to Usyk, three more reigning world champions ( Murat Gassiev , Myris Briedis , Junior Dorticos ) and other top boxers of the division submitted applications for participation.

Fight with Marco Hook

On September 9, 2017, the quarter-final match of the World Boxing Super Series tournament took place in Berlin , in which Alexander Usik met with the ex-world champion, eminent Bosnian German Marco Huck .

From the first rounds, Alexander Usyk controlled the course of the battle, regularly worrying Marco Hook with deuces, but he showed good stamina and kept all missed shots, dangerously counterattacking. And yet, Usyk was much faster, more technical, winning round after round. Hook had no choice but to dirty box, but Usyk, who was closing his head during clinchs , and the referee , who repeatedly warned Hook, were once taken off a point for hitting the back of the head of a slipping Usyk at 8 round. In the last rounds, Alexander’s advantage was undeniable, and it all ended in the tenth round, when after a lengthy attack by Usyk, during which Hook stood at the ropes and took punches, the referee stopped the fight. The result - the victory of Alexander Usik by TKO in the tenth round. Thus, Alexander Usik retained his WBO World Champion belt and reached the semifinals of the World Boxing Super Series.

Unification battle with Myris Briedis

Usyk won this fight on January 27, 2018, at the Arena Riga . The fight took place as part of the semi-final of the World Boxing Super Series (WBSS). At stake were two championship belts: Usyk WBO, and Briedis WBC.

Initially, experts agreed that it would be a chess game of two thinking boxers. And so it happened. The fight came out incredibly interesting, entertaining and intriguing. Usyk, who, after a little reconnaissance in the first rounds, occupied the center of the ring, tried to keep his opponent at a distance, periodically checking his defense with whipping blows. At the same time, Briedis moved very well and answered Alexander with blows to the hull. In the second round, the owner of the ring inflicted several successful jabs in the head of the Ukrainian. The three-minute ending was marked by a curiosity: the referee did not hear the gong, after which the boxers found out the relationship for a few extra seconds. In the third round, Myris hit his head in the face of Usik. The referee was forced to interrupt the fight and make a comment to Briedis. The fifth round was marked by the uniform beating of Briedis: Usyk showed himself perfectly in the middle distance, throwing a lot of accurate punches. In the sixth round, Alexander shocked the opponent with a left straight, but Briedis remained on his feet. The ninth round began with attacks by Myris. The Ukrainian managed to impose his boxing on the opponent, but just before the gong he missed a rather heavy blow on the counterattack. In the tenth round, the rivals made a real "slaughter", having set off in exchange. Championship rounds have become incredibly intense. At the same time, Mairis lost a little in pace, and at the end of round 11 the Latvian missed the straight left, after which blood appeared on his face. As a result, the battle lasted all 12 rounds, after which, by the decision of the majority of judges, Alexander Usik won - 114: 114, 115: 113, 115: 113. Thus, Alexander combined the championship belts in the first heavyweight, becoming the owner of two champion belts according to the WBO and WBC versions, and also reached the final of the World Boxing Super Series ^[33] .

The fight was broadcast on the British ppv channel ITV Box Office, but was shown for free without pay per view.

Immediately after the fight in the ring, Alexander Usik admitted that the fight against Briedis was the hardest in his career. ^[34] “The opposition of the athlete, a quality fight by Myris, became the determining factor in the fight. These are probably my hardest 12 rounds I have ever played. We will draw the appropriate conclusions and will prepare for the finals, ”said Usyk after the fight.

The fight for the title of absolute world champion with Murat Gassiev

In July 2018, the final match of the tournament between Alexander Usik and Murat Gassiev took place . From the very beginning of the battle, Usik worked hard as a jab, constantly leaving the opponent’s attack angles. Gassiev leisurely pursued Alexander and tried to hit the hull. Murat managed to hook Usik's head with a whip to the right at the end of the fourth round. However, the tactics of a single strike did not work, and Usyk, in fact, declassified Gassiev, not allowing a single combination for the entire battle. In the final fight, Usyk became the absolute world champion in the first heavyweight according to the WBA super , WBC , IBF , WBO and the vacant The Ring titles , the linear champion, the champion according to TBRB , and also won the exclusive Mohammed Ali Cup and a cash prize of $ 10 million. The fight was originally supposed to be held on May 11, 2018 in Saudi Arabia. Less than a month before the fight, the organizer side announced that the fight will not take place in Saudi Arabia. In addition, Alexander Usik received a shoulder injury, and the battle was postponed to the summer of 2018. The Russian side expressed a desire to hold a duel in Russia, but the Usik team rejected the offer, insisting on holding a fight in "neutral" territory. The battle still took place in Russia (Moscow).

The fight took place on a paid broadcast system by the British television channel ITV Box Office at a price of 10 £ or 13 € per view.

Fight with Tony Bellew

Shortly after the fight with Gassiev, Usik was awarded the WBO Super Champion title. This gave him the right to fight with the champion in the category above. Usyk expressed a desire to have a duel with Briton Tony Bellew . After the negotiation process, Usyk decided to conclude a promotional contract with Eddie Hearn and Matchroom Boxing, which also represented Tony Bellew. According to preliminary negotiations, the battle with Tony Bellew was agreed on November 10 or 17, 2018 in London. K2 remained an equal shareholder as Matchroom Boxing ^[35] .

The fight was an unpredictable scenario, as for the audience: Bellew was effective in the first half of the battle and took the main starting rounds. Losing the battle on points, Usyk won by heavy knockout in the 8th round, having carried out several successful multi-hit combinations. After the fight, Bellew praised Usik's skill and stated that he would cheer for him and urged his fans to follow the career of the Ukrainian champion.

Temporary title scheme

• Regional titles

• Minor World Titles

• The main world titles

Wife Catherine. Children: Cyril, Michael and Elizabeth ^[36] .

• Alexander Usik starred in many commercials of MTS Ukraine ^{[37] [38]} .
• Alexander Usik topped the rating of the British television channel BoxNation from the five most promising boxers in the world ^[39] .
• In March 2016, Usyk took the 5th line in the ranking of the best boxers according to the World Boxing Council (WBC) in the first weight category ^[40] .

The antennae supports ATO fighters and repeatedly visits their positions. ^{[41] [42]}

Despite this, in April 2016, Alexander Usyk, in an interview with reporters during an open training session of the Ukrainian boxing team at the Olympic base in Koncha-Zaspa, stated the following ^[43] .

“... In Crimea, they support me, all over Russia I have a lot of fans. In principle, I do not divide our peoples, for we are Slavs. Let’s say so - the Slavs. There are no obstacles, only someone has an obstacle in their head. ” ^[44]

В январе 2018 года накануне боя против Майриса Бриедиса на вопрос журналистов о том, чьим Усик считает Крым , боксёр ответил, что он «не попугай, чтобы повторять по сто раз — что, где, когда» и сказал, что успешно представляет Украину во всём мире: «Флаг поднимается украинский, гимн играет украинский — вот мой ответ вам, провокаторы». ^{[45] [46] [47]}

• Орден «За заслуги» ІІ степени (15 августа 2012) ^[48] .
• Орден «За заслуги» III степени (12 октября 2011) — за весомый личный вклад в развитие отечественного спорта, достижение высоких результатов, укрепления международного авторитета Украины ^[49] .
• Лучший спортсмен Украины 2012 — получил звание лучшего спортсмена Украины 2012 по результату голосования Sport.ua ^[50] .
• Почётный гражданин Симферополя (2012) — За значительный личный вклад в развитие физической культуры и спорта, спортивное мастерство, достижение высоких результатов в спорте ^[51] .
• Орден преподобного Ильи Муромца I степени ( УПЦ , 2018) ^[52] .
• Боксёр года (2018) по версиям изданий The Ring , ESPN , Sports Illustrated , BoxingTalk и Yahoo .
• Номинант на звание спортсмена года (2018) по версии BBC .
• Нокаут года по версии WBC (с Тони Белью) (2018) ^[14] .

Interview

• Якимова Марина . Чемпион мира по боксу Александр Усик: «Не люблю, когда шутят про боксёров» // Комсомольская правда в Украине. — 26 марта 2012 года.

• Reigning World Boxing Champions
• Список чемпионов мира по боксу в первом тяжёлом весе
• Украинские чемпионы мира по боксу
• Список абсолютных чемпионов мира по боксу
• Боксёр года по версии журнала The Ring

• Усик, Александр Александрович (англ.) — статистика профессиональных боёв на сайте BoxRec
• Официальный сайт Александра Усика
• Александр Усик — олимпийская статистика на сайте Sports-Reference.com (англ.)