"I'm done with boxing": Usyk tells about the turning point in his career

The new heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk (22-0, 14 KOs) wanted to end his boxing career after his defeat at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, where he lost in the second round to Italian Clement Russo. The then 21-year-old athlete was upset by the defeat, which he considered unfair.

He told about it to his trainer Russ Anber during the preparation for the fight against Tyson Fury (34-1-1, KO). Boxing King Media published the video on its YouTube channel. According to Usyk, he changed his mind about retiring from the sport after a conversation with a close friend.

"I was young, I thought I had won the fight. But I boxed well, the fight was close. I didn't lose. I was beaten in the block, but the computer counted the points, 7-4. I came home, told my mom and dad that it was no good, the judges were bad, and I was done with boxing. My mom was happy, but my dad told me not to say that. An old friend called me and asked what was going on. He gave me a hard time. The next day I went back to the gym," Usyk said.

On May 18, Usyk defeated Fury by split decision – 115:112, 113:114, 114:113. The Ukrainian became the first absolute world heavyweight champion in the era of four belts.

Following the fight, the Ukrainian was suspended from boxing for medical reasons. He was hospitalized after the fight. Promoter Oleksandr Krasiuk spoke about the details of the boxer's jaw injury.

Bookmakers have already started accepting bets on Usyk and Fury's rematch. However, it is not yet known whether the Ukrainian will retain the title of absolute champion.

Later it became known that Usyk could have been arrested in Saudi Arabia after the fight. And the knockdown in the fight was found in an eighteenth-century painting.

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