Plans for Oleksandr Usyk and Daniel Dubois to unify their heavyweight titles in a rematch later this year remain on track after the Ukrainian expressed his desire for that fight to take place next.
Usyk's manager Alex Krassyuk last week revealed talks for the rematch with Dubois (22-2, 21 KOs) were ongoing and that Wembley Stadium was an option to host.
The other option to host, naturally, would be Saudi Arabia, where three of Usyk's last four fights have been held.
Usyk (23-0, 14 KOs), the WBA/WBC/WBO and Ring heavyweight champion, previously held all the belts but relinquished the IBF title after beating Tyson Fury in May 2024, leaving it for Daniel Dubois to pick up.
Since losing to Usyk by ninth-round stoppage in August 2023, Dubois has been on a tear, stopping Jarrell Miller, Filip Hrgovic and Anthony Joshua in consecutive bouts, the last of which a crowning performance at Wembley in front of over 90,000 fans.
Now Dubois, whose father Stan previously told The Ring they're also working towards a fight with Usyk this year, and Usyk himself, look to be on a collision course for a huge fight in the next few months.
“We want to fight Dubois," Usyk told Al Arabiya News. "My team is ready. A lot depends on how God will give us a way to do it and the second person who can do it is His Excellency, Turki Alalshikh, because he is the person who can organise this fight. I think there would be obstacles otherwise.
“The only person who can organise it is His Excellency and the Riyadh season.
"You know, I always fought on the land of my opponents. At present, Saudi Arabia has created the best environment, and organised these fights, so it has become like my second home.
"When I box in Saudi Arabia, it feels like our second home – great people, great fans. We can go to look around and meet with people. Currently, we cannot host fights in Ukraine, but we can have them in Saudi Arabia – they are very kind to us.”
It's also been suggested that former UFC light-heavyweight champion Alex Pereira, known for his monstrous left hook and punching power, could make for an entertaining crossover opponent for Usyk.
Last year, former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou was knocked out by Anthony Joshua in two rounds, but in October 2023 he scored a knockdown over Tyson Fury in their Riyadh clash before losing a controversial split decision.
While the idea of fighting Pereira interests Usyk, he doesn't want anything to do with it until he faces Dubois again.
The former undisputed cruiserweight champion added: “Yes, I would be interested [in a Pereira fight], but only after the fight with Daniel to merge our belts.
"I even considered the option of fighting in a cage. It is a joke, but every joke contains an element of truth.”