The Last Man Standing Oleksandr Usyk!

Last weekend we witnessed a cruiserweight great define his legendary status in the division as Ukraine’s hero Oleksandr Usyk defeated Russian power house Murat Gassiev to become the divisions 5 belt unified champion. Before the tournament had even began many fans and pundits had already pencilled down Usyk as the potential winner of the tournament in his weight class, but the fashion in which he delivered upon his promise was nothing short of great. He kicked off his winning form by travelling to Germany and defending his WBO strap against the tough resistant and former cruiserweight king in his own right captain Marco Huck. The fight was a one sided contest from the start as Usyk easily picked apart the former champ with hard and dazzling combinations both on the inside and at range on route to a well-deserved 10th round TKO victory.

Next up for the road warrior was a trip to Belarus where he faced the come forward bruiser and former police officer WBC champion Marius Briedis. This fight was a toe to toe battle of will and nutrition as both guys laid it on the line. Usyk fought with an unfamiliar style by staying in the pocket with Breidis landing big shots but also on the receiving end of them as well. The gruelling contest went the full 12 rounds with no knockdowns, but by showing fortitude and more desire to win in the later rounds of the fight Usyk managed to convince the judges he did enough and earnt himself a ticket into the tournament final.

Which brings us to this past weekend where coming into the fight it was split 50/50 with pundits and fans as to who would become victorious and become the first boxer to lift the prestigious Mohammed Ali trophy and be the proud owner of all 5 unified belts. Standing across the ring from Usyk was the young, hungry, and dangerous puncher Murat Gassiev who held the WBA and IBF cruiserweight titles. Gassiev was also coming into the contest in fine and confident form after knocking out two former champions back to back on his way to progressing to the final. The question on everyone’s mind coming in was which boxer’s style would hold up in the fight and which fighter would be able to go that extra mile when needed.

Well we certainly got our answers in resounding fashion as for 12 rounds Oleksandr Usyk gave boxing fans a wonderful show by demonstrating how to effectively use the jab, speedy hand combinations and elusive footwork to bewilder and break down a strong determined warrior like Gassiev. Those who got to witness the boxing magician at work live at the Olympic stadium in Moscow, Russia could only stand and cheer at the end of the fight as they witnessed a truly outstanding performer in all his glory. Even the opponent on the receiving end of the great performance Murat Gassiev smiled, hugged, and applauded his rival fully aware and humbled by the fact that he just shared the ring with a modern great and certain future Hall Of Famer.