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Agit Kabayel Praises Oleksandr Usyk, Eyes Next Shot At Undisputed Champion: 'This Is The Best Matchup'
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Agit Kabayel Praises Oleksandr Usyk, Eyes Next Shot At Undisputed Champion: 'This Is The Best Matchup'
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Jul 21, 2025
John Evans
Jul 21, 2025
2 min read
Usyk has made his name by slaying the heavyweight division's giants but Kabayel is a smart, busy fighter and an excellent body puncher. He believes that his style would provide the 38-year-old with a different type of challenge.
Agit Kabayel would welcome the chance to pit his wits against undisputed heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk.
Last night, Usyk ruthlessly dismantled Daniel Dubois in front of more than 90,000 fans at London's Wembley Stadium. The win saw him reclaim the IBF title he vacated last year and reassert his grip on the heavyweight division.
At 38 years old, Usyk looked better than ever. The Ring Magazine champion confused Dubois with clever footwork, hurt the younger, bigger man with a hard, accurate jab and then dropped him twice en route to a 5th-round stoppage.
WBC interim heavyweight champion Kabayel (26-0, 18 KOs) had a front row seat for Usyk's latest masterclass and the unbeaten German had nothing but praise for the Ukrainian great.
"Usyk is an excellent boxer. He made everything perfect and stopped him. It is what it is, this is heavyweight boxing," he told Queensberry immediately after the fight.
"My prediction was in the first four three or four rounds, Daniel Dubois would push him but Usyk is clever. He made a big counter and you saw the result."
After beating Dubois, Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua twice each, Usyk has already lapped the field but as he said after the fight, "38 is still young" and whilst he can't continue forever, the unbeaten Ukrainian will fight on for the foreseeable future.
The search will now go out for a new contender capable of pushing him. The WBO's mandatory challenger Joseph Parker has waited patiently for his opportunity and immediately post-fight, the New Zealander's name was one on most people's lips.
As is his way, Kabayel stood quietly and took in the whole scene.
After racking up impressive stoppage victories over Arslanbek Makhmudov, Frank Sanchez and Zhilei Zhang in Saudi Arabia, the 32-year-old looks likely to return home to Germany this autumn to make a defence of his newly-won WBC interim title.
Usyk has made his name by slaying the heavyweight division's giants but Kabayel is a smart, busy fighter and an excellent body puncher. He believes that his style would provide the 38-year-old with a different type of challenge.
"I think so. You know, I hate trash talk but think, for the fans and all boxing fans, this is the best matchup. You know, two guys who have never lost in their careers. He's number one in the world, I'm number four in the Ring Magazine rankings. Why not? I am 26-0, he is 24-0. Let's go. Maybe Turki Alalshikh [can make it], I'm ready."
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John Evans
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