WORLD heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk has vacated his World Boxing Organization (WBO) title, the sanctioning body announced Monday (Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2025, PH time).
The belt will pass to Britain’s Fabio Wardley, who earned interim champion status with an 11th-round stoppage of Joseph Parker last month.
Wardley had been mandated to face Usyk, but the Ukrainian chose to step aside. The WBO described the move as a “respectful pause” from Usyk’s team.
Usyk, 38, became undisputed heavyweight champion for the second time after defeating Daniel Dubois in July. He retains the World Boxing Association (WBA), World Boxing Council (WBC), and International Boxing Federation (IBF) titles.
Wardley becomes the sixth British fighter to hold the WBO heavyweight belt, joining Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua, Henry Akinwande, Herbie Hide, and Michael Bentt.
Paul vs. Joshua
Meanwhile, YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul will face former world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua in an eight-round professional bout on Dec. 19 at the Kaseya Center in Miami. The fight will be streamed live on Netflix.
Paul, 28, owns a 12-1 record with seven knockouts and most recently beat former middleweight champion Julio César Chávez Jr. by unanimous decision in June.
Joshua, 36, is a two-time world champion and Olympic gold medalist but has been inactive since losing to Dubois in an IBF title fight in September 2024. / From the wires