By and large, there isn’t much that Oleksandr Usyk has left to accomplish. Already in possession of The Ring's heavyweight crown, along with the WBA, WBC, and WBO titles, there isn’t a belt that the Ukrainian hasn't won.

Thanks to the work he’s put in at the cruiserweight division as well, a first-class trip to the Hall of Fame will be his next destination the moment he hangs em' up. With that said, retirement is the furthest thing from his mind.

He may have the skulls of Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua, and Derek Chisora sitting on his mantle next to his titles but according to Usyk, there’s still plenty of work to do.

Paulie Malignaggi doesn’t quite understand what Usyk is talking about. Sure there might be a few more wins he could ultimately grab, but from his point of view, why take the chance when everything has been perfect?

“I personally don’t agree with Usyk,” said Malignaggi on Paulie TV. “I think he should retire. He’s 37 years old. You put yourself more at risk. I think his legacy is unbelievable right now.”

Heavyweight contenders are lining up for miles in the hopes of landing a shot against Usyk. Daniel Dubois, however, appears to be the frontrunner. First things first though, he has to take care of business against Joseph Parker on February 22nd. If Dubois throws Parker’s body off the heavyweight mountain, he’ll likely land the sequel he’s looking for.

Back in August 2023, Dubois and Usyk got it on. For the most part, the Ukrainian seemed to be on cruise control. That is until a fifth-round shot to the midsection, deemed a low blow, dropped Usyk. Referee Luis Pabon called for an immediate break and gave the defending champion an extended recovery period. Once things resumed, Usyk (23-0, 14 KOs) went on to drop and stop Dubois in the ninth.

Putting together a perfect run in boxing is practically impossible but Malignaggi believes that’s practically what Usyk has done. The only small smudge comes from his win over Dubois. If Usyk wants, he could make things crystal clear in a rematch later this year but it isn’t something Malignaggi believes is actually needed.

“A Dubois win could secure it even stronger because of the controversy of that other Dubois win but I don’t think it’s necessary.”