Saudi Arabia’s influential boxing head, Turki Alalshikh, has publicly stated his desired next bout, and it features the recently reaffirmed undisputed heavyweight champion, Oleksandr Usyk.
Shortly after Usyk secured a fifth-round stoppage victory over Daniel Dubois in their Wembley rematch, Alalshikh used social media to champion a face-off between the Ukrainian champion and the emerging British talent, Moses Itauma.
Alalshikh, who chairs Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority, posted, “I want to see Usyk against Itauma. This is the fight,” accompanying his statement with a shrugging emoji and a boxing glove icon.
Alalshikh himself was present at Wembley Stadium for Saturday night’s highly anticipated heavyweight event. He was observed seated with veteran promoter Frank Warren and was also photographed conversing with actor Jason Statham.
The 38-year-old Usyk delivered yet another dominant performance under the Wembley lights, extinguishing Dubois’ ambition of becoming the first British boxer to unify the heavyweight division in the four-belt era. The London-based fighter was floored twice in the fifth round before being counted out, igniting a roar from the 90,000-strong crowd.