German heavyweight Agit Kabayel has voiced his displeasure at being left out of Oleksandr Usyk’s three-fight retirement plan.
The three-time undisputed champion laid his plans out yesterday, which involve a WBC title defense against kickboxing legend Rico Verhoeven, the winner of Fabio Wardley and Daniel Dubois, and a trilogy with Tyson Fury.
Kabayel (27-0, 19 KOs) holds the WBC interim belt and is expected to challenge for the WBC world title once Usyk handles Verhoeven at the Pyramids of Giza in Egypt on May 23.
“My parents always told me to stay humble and respectful,” Kabayel posted on Instagram. “But I can’t be ignored any longer. I deserve the title shot.”
“Great fight between two legends. But Rico’s last boxing fight was in 2014,” Kabayel added in a separate post. “In my opinion, fights like these shouldn’t be for the world title belt. Otherwise, sooner or later boxing will lose the trust of the fans.”
Currently on a six-fight knockout streak, Kabayel made short work of Damian Knyba with a third-round stoppage during a German homecoming in January. The 33-year-old has been scratching his head after not getting a mention from the current IBF, WBA and WBC heavyweight champion.
Kabayel also stated in an interview with RTL/ntv and sport.de: “I have always respected Usyk greatly for his sporting achievements and said, ‘Hey, he doesn’t shy away from a challenge and is a man of his word.’ But he’s only interested in money; everything else is of no interest to him. I’ve noticed that again very clearly now. How can he not name the number one in the rankings, his mandatory challenger? It’s just sad that he’d rather fight Dubois or Fury a third time, even though he’s already beaten them both twice,” said Kabayel.
However, Kabayel still expects to fight for the WBC world title in the near future.
“The WBC promised to order it right after Usyk’s [next] fight,” Kabayel said in another separate post. “I know Mauricio Sulaiman is a man of his word, so I will get my chance very soon.”
One fan said, “Usyk is scared of you,” to Kabayel during a Q&A session on Instagram. He responded with a picture of Usyk lying on the canvas holding his stomach from the debatable low blow against Dubois in 2023: “I wouldn’t say a legend like him is scared. But somehow he is always avoiding my name when he talks about opponents. Maybe he doesn’t want his liver to get tested by my body shots.”
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