Boxing legend Lennox Lewis gives Usyk important career advice
Oleksandr Usyk (photo: Getty Images)
The undisputed heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk may follow in the footsteps of boxing legend Lennox Lewis, who has decided to share some advice with the Ukrainian fighter, reports The Ring.
Boxing legend advises Usyk not to rush
The British athlete emphasized that Usyk should follow his own path and retire at the top of his career, just as Lewis once did.
"I would say to him to retire at your own time, but retire on top like I did," Lewis said.
"But he can teach a lot of young boxers a lot of different things—dedication, hard work, sacrifice—because he's been through that," added the former champion.
Usyk is at the top after a series of victories
Over the past four years, Usyk has fought six bouts, claiming victories over Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua, and Daniel Dubois.
The Ukrainian remains the undisputed leader in the heavyweight division. He is now considering his next steps, including potential fights against New Zealand's Joseph Parker and young British heavyweight Moses Itauma.
Lewis emphasized that boxing will always have challengers eager to defeat the champion, which is why it's important to retire at the right time.
"There's always other boxers out there that don't want you to achieve that. They're standing by, they want to beat you, they want to be the first boxer to beat you. That's why you've got to make sure that you retire on top," he added.
Parallels with Lewis's career
Lewis retired at the age of 38 after knocking out Vitalii Klychko in 2003.
Before that, he defeated Mike Tyson, Hasim Rahman, Evander Holyfield, David Tua, and other notable boxers, finishing his career with a record of 42-2-1.
Currently, Usyk is recovering from a back injury sustained in his July fight against Dubois.
The Ukrainian boxer has also been working on a new project—filming the movie "The Smashing Machine" alongside Dwayne Johnson.
Earlier, we revealed who made the list of the top 10 richest boxers of all time.
