Oleksandr Usyk says he will begin preparing for rematch with Anthony Joshua amid war in Ukraine
CBSN
The unified heavyweight champ is expected to leave his homeland to prepare for the second meeting with 'AJ'
As war continues in his home country of Ukraine, unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk says he has decided to begin preparing for his rematch with Anthony Joshua. Usyk's previous decision to take up arms in the face of Russian aggression had previously put the rematch in jeopardy.
Usyk, who won the IBF, WBO and WBA titles in a dominant decision win over Joshua this past September, had joined a territorial defense battalion in Kiev in February. He'd returned to the country from the United Kingdom, joining fellow boxing star Vasiliy Lomachenko and former heavyweight champions Vitaly and Wladimir Klitschko as familiar faces to join in the country's defense.
On Friday, Usyk posted a message on Instagram reading, "I decided to start preparing for a rematch with Anthony Joshua, a large number of my friends support me, all the rest of the good and peace, Thank God for everything."
