Usyk to vacate titles but planning his 'last dance...

Andreas HaleJun 26, 2026, 01:28 PM ET

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Andreas Hale is a combat sports reporter at ESPN. Andreas covers MMA, boxing and pro wrestling. In Andreas' free time, he plays video games, obsesses over music and is a White Sox and 49ers fan. He is also a host for Sirius XM's Fight Nation. Before joining ESPN, Andreas was a senior writer at DAZN and Sporting News. He started his career as a music journalist for outlets including HipHopDX, The Grammys and Jay-Z's Life+Times. He is also an NAACP Image Award-nominated filmmaker as a producer for the animated short film "Bridges" in 2024.

Unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk announced that he is vacating his WBA, IBF and WBC heavyweight titles. He is not retiring, however, as he has one "last dance" before he calls it a career.

"Today is Friday, the weather is beautiful, and it is a good day to say that I want to vacate all the belts I currently hold," Usyk said in an Instagram post. "I want to make them available so the guys who want them and are next in line can fight for them."

Usyk, 39, is coming off a surprisingly difficult fight with kickboxer Rico Verhoeven, whom he controversially stopped at the end of the 11th round last month. ESPN's No. 2 pound-for-pound fighter had a difficult time tracking down Verhoeven, who had boxed only once as a professional prior to his fight with Usyk.

It appeared that Usyk's next fight would be a title defense against top contender Agit Kabayel, but Friday's announcement could alter those plans. Usyk (25-0, 16 KOs) made it clear that he still wants to fight but will not be doing so as a world champion.

"Friends, I'm leaving the belts but not leaving the sport because I still have my last dance," he said.

Sergey Lapin, Usyk's sporting director, issued a statement Friday suggesting that "last dance" may involve a contest in the United States.

"As Usyk's Sporting Director, I can say that this decision was made with the future of the heavyweight division in mind," Lapin said. "Oleksandr vacated the sanctioning body titles to give Anthony Joshua the opportunity to compete for and reunify them.

"As for Oleksandr, his goal has always been to finish his legendary career with his final fights in the United States, where he wants to leave the last chapter of his boxing legacy."

Lapin added that Usyk would retain his Ring Magazine title, often regarded in boxing circles as the lineal championship for proven unified champions atop an individual division.

Usyk is the first male boxer to become a three-time undisputed champion in the "four-belt era." He accomplished the feat at cruiserweight in 2018 and twice as a heavyweight in 2024 and 2025.