Follow usLennox Lewis encouraged Oleksandr Usyk to step away from boxing while still at the peak of his powers, advising the Ukrainian to “retire on top, like I did.”
Usyk last year became the first undisputed heavyweight champion since Lewis in 1999, making his legacy as one of the sport’s greats. The Olympic gold medallist, still unbeaten as a professional, has already hinted that he expects to have just one more fight before closing the book on his career.
Lewis himself bowed out in 2003, defeating Vitali Klitschko in his final bout to remain widely recognized as the best heavyweight in the world. Reflecting on Usyk’s next move, the British great told Sky Sports:
Lennox Lewis has some advice for Oleksandr Usyk 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/sOe1YVvUNg
— Sky Sports Boxing (@SkySportsBoxing) October 2, 2025
“When a guy retires, it’s really down to him. He’s got to feel that push that he wants to retire, but he can teach a lot of young boxers a lot of different things: dedication, hard work, sacrifice, because he’s been through that. So I would say to him to retire at your own time, but retire on top. Like I did.”
Usyk has already made history by becoming undisputed champion at both cruiserweight and heavyweight — something achieved only by Evander Holyfield.
“I think he would have fared really good because he’s doing something Evander Holyfield did [moving up from cruiserweight successfully],” Lewis said. “In this era he’s beaten all the big guys and all the guys that were in front of him. So he’s done a great job.
“There’s always other boxers out there that don’t want you to achieve that. They’re standing by, they want to beat you, they want to be the first boxer to beat you. That’s why you’ve got to make sure that you retire on top.”
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