As it became known earlier, the championship committee of the International Boxing Federation (IBF) decided to appoint a fight between the heavyweight champion Ukrainian Oleksandr Usyk (20-0, 13 KOs) and the mandatory contender from Croatia Filip Hrgovic (15-0, 12 KOs).
Usyk’s promoter Oleksandr Krasyuk commented on this news, and with it the threat looming over the organization of the fight for the title of absolute division champion between Ukrainian and British Tyson Fury (32-0-1, 23 KOs).
“Today, the IBF appointed Filip Hrgovic as the official contender for the fight with Oleksandr Usyk,” Krasyuk quotes
Tribuna. – Firstly, this is a rather controversial decision, given the order of mandatory defenses (the first on the list is Dubois from the WBA). Secondly, such a fight could distance the world from the most anticipated historical confrontation for the undisputed champion.
- All the mandatory contenders and the order of Usyk’s defenses – says Krasyuk
“And yet, not everything is so bad,” the CEO of K2 Promotions Ukraine is reassuring. – 1) until the date of the auction is set, the IBF will have the right to sanction the fight for the absolute, since this rank of the fight is a priority for all four organizations; 2) the teams of Usyk and the opponent (Fury) already have even a preliminary date for such a fight (February 18).”
“With that said, the IBF will have every legal tool to give priority to the big fight. And let me remind you that Usyk, in the status of an official contender, has been waiting for a duel with Joshua for more than 2 years, ”added Krasyuk.
Meanwhile, Usyk showed cars purchased for the Armed Forces of Ukraine – video.