Beterbiev: “There will be no fight with Usyk, he is too strong for me!”

Artur Beterbiev, the undisputed light heavyweight champion with a terrifying record of 21-0 and 20 knockouts to his name, has bluntly admitted that he is not ready for a scrap with Oleksandr Usyk, the undefeated heavyweight king. In an interview with Fight Hub on January 13, Beterbiev confessed: “There will be no fight with Usyk. He is too strong for me.” At least he’s honest, huh?

Beterbiev made it clear in an interview with Fight Hub TV that moving up to heavyweight to face Usyk is not on his to-do list. “If he comes back down to my division, I’ll fight him. But not at heavyweight. Cruiserweight? No. Too strong, too good.” Well, that’s one way to dodge a beating.

The pair have history, having met three times in the amateur ranks. Usyk came out on top twice, and it seems those memories are still fresh for Beterbiev. I can’t say I blame him for not wanting to be part of the man who just trained Tyson Fury.

Speaking of Fury, Beterbiev had some thoughts on that as well. “Fury fought well. I’m sorry there are no big names in heavyweight right now. I mean, real legends like Muhammad Ali or Mike Tyson. Right now, Usyk and Fury are the best in this weight class” . Translation: Heavyweight is a bit of a slumber party these days, aside from Usyk and Fury.

To be fair, Beterbiev’s honesty is a rare thing in boxing. Most fighters would have given a canned line about “consider all options” or “test yourself against the best”. Instead, Beterbiev basically says, “No, mate. I’ll stay in my own lane.”