Teddy Atlas believes Oleksandr Usyk has the opportunity to do something even Muhammad Ali and Joe Louis could not: leave boxing while still near the top of his powers.
Usyk has already become undisputed champion in two divisions and owns major heavyweight wins over Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua.
“All I want is for Usyk to do something not every great fighter has been able to pull off: walk off into the sunset at your best,” Atlas said.
He pointed to Ali and Louis as examples of legendary champions who continued fighting beyond their peaks and paid a physical price for staying in the sport too long.
Usyk stopped Rico Verhoeven in the 11th round in May before vacating his heavyweight titles and revealing that he plans to fight only once more.
Deontay Wilder has been mentioned as a possible opponent for that final appearance.
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