Oleksandr Usyk makes same sacrifice as Tyson Fury ahead of Daniel Dubois fight
Oleksandr Usyk didn't see his wife for three months ahead of his showdown with Daniel Dubois.
Usyk will take on Dubois for a second time this weekend when the rivals meet at Wembley for all four heavyweight titles. Usyk will be attempting to become the division's undisputed champion for the second time on Saturday night. And he sacrificed seeing wife Yekaterina as he trained in Spain for his meeting with the Brit.
"It's always been very difficult but I always keep in mind that I have to be focused on training and I chose this path to be who I am now," he said. "Sometimes we have to give away things to get even better things. And sometimes it's the people that are around us, that are closest to us, they pay the price for us.
"I'm always calling my wife early in the morning when our young daughter wakes up, she always wants to see her daddy. It's always in the morning and evening, sometimes even in the lunchtime when there's a break and I have time for it."
Tyson Fury made an even bigger sacrifice before his second defeat by Usyk last December by not speaking to wife Paris at all for the three months before the first bell.
Usyk did have his sons in training camp as one of his boys prepared for a judo tournament. "They were there with me and then they left, they had been there for one week then one of them went to Spain to train for the Spanish championship. One stayed with me and then they came back again for two days and then they left again.
"It was a great performance (by his son). He took second place because he was just lacking experience for now."
Usyk won Olympic gold as an amateur and was the undisputed cruiserweight world champion before moving up to the sport's premier division. And he revealed he will fight just once more after Saturday night's sequel with Dubois.
"I will have two more fights, now and next," he added. But I'm not going to quit boxing forever. I'm going to be training younger boxers and giving them the experience I've gained. Maybe I'll even become the coach."
One fight open to Usyk is a trilogy bout with Fury who recently reversed his decision to come out of retirement. Fury hung up his gloves in January. But asked about a third clash with the Brit, Usyk said: "I don't know. Now my focus it's only Daniel on Saturday."
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How do Oleksandr Usyk and Daniel Dubois' weights compare to first fight?
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27 minutes ago
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Oleksandr Usyk scaled a career-heavy XXXlb while Daniel Dubois was 10lb heavier than when the rivals first met almost two years ago Oleksandr Usyk stole the show after weighing in for his rematch with Daniel Dubois. Usyk scaled a career-high 227.3lb for his Wembley rematch with Dubois on Saturday night, with the Brit weighing in at 243.8lb, 10lb heavier than he was for their first meeting in 2022, and 16lb heavier than his rival. The heavyweights will meet to crown the undisputed champion of the division, a year after Usyk defeated Tyson Fury to claim just that honour. And the Ukrainian appeared to seize the upper hand following their final face-off, standing front and centre on the stage while taking the acclaim of the fans and drowning out Dubois' interview in the process. The Brit did manage to say: "I am locked in and focused... I cannot wait! I am going to win by any means necessary." Usyk, meanwhile, said simply: "For me it is a great opportunity... for my people and my country. Thank you for Jesus Christ. See you tomorrow!" Watch Usyk vs Dubois 2 live on DAZN £24.99 DAZN Order the fight here Product Description Dubois cut a more relaxed figure during a drama-free open workout on Wednesday and Thursday's press conference, but previously the 27-year-old from London and his team had seemed eager to get under the skin of the WBA, WBO and WBC champion. The first flashpoint occurred at Wembley in April when Dubois pushed Usyk in the chest before a day later Don Charles, the British boxer's trainer, claimed the undefeated Ukrainian deserved an 'Oscar' for his antics during their first fight in Poland in 2023. Usyk required nearly four minutes to recover from a punch from Dubois which was deemed an illegal low blow. Talk of the contentious incident has dissipated during fight week, but only after Dubois' emotions threatened to boil over on Tuesday. The Briton screamed his own name and 'the new' in the face of an ice-cool Usyk outside Wembley. Speaking afterwards about the incident, Usyk said: 'I hate stupidity. 'I'm a faithful person. I see only the best in people, but sometimes people show their bad side and even when they're showing their bad side, I would never judge them. 'I wouldn't say anything bad about them or say, 'I do not respect you for that'. In moments like this, I just think, 'Please God, give him (Daniel) some brains, some understanding and just willpower to get better (from) where he is now'. 'I respect every boxer, every sportsman that is going to the ring, going to the ring meaning to be a fighter. Every opponent that I see in the ring is the fighter that came there to make himself better, to become better.' It was only 23 months ago that Dubois and Usyk shared the ring and the 38-year-old produced a masterful display before going on to prove himself the best in the blue-riband division with two points triumphs over Tyson Fury. Not long after the end of Usyk's ninth-round stoppage of Dubois, he went up to his defeated opponent and told him to 'keep going'. Fast forward to the present day and Usyk will step into the ring to face a different Dubois, who has claimed impressive wins over Jarrell Miller, Filip Hrgovic and Anthony Joshua. Yet the former undisputed world cruiserweight champion warned: 'I think that Daniel has gotten better and now he has a championship belt, but I haven't been staying in one place either. I've been growing too. After the fight, when Daniel lost, I said don't make a mistake and never stop and keep going.' The big question for Usyk in recent years has been how long he will continue and the answer remains for two more fights. It means Saturday is set to be his penultimate bout, but could a trilogy fight with Fury be the perfect way for the Ukrainian great to bring the curtain down on a stellar career? 'I don't know. Now my focus is only Daniel on Saturday,' Usyk said. 'No (retirement). Two (more). This and next. I'm not going to quit boxing forever. I'm going to be training younger boxers and giving them the experience I've gained. Maybe I'll even become the coach."
