Oleksandr Usyk vs Derek Chisora officially announced for May 23 in London

Oleksandr Usyk will return to the UK and face Derek Chisora on May 23 at the O2 Arena in London.

The former undisputed cruiserweight champion has now moved up to heavyweight and will put his status as WBO mandatory to Anthony Joshua on the line against the rejuvenated Brit.

Ed Mulholland/Matchroom

Oleksandr Usyk is the WBO heavyweight mandatory challenger

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Despite having nine losses to his name, Chisora (32-9, 23 KOs) has experienced a career renaissance in the past two years, including knockout wins over Carlos Takam, Artur Szpilka and David Price.

As a result, he is now back headlining an important Sky Sports pay-per-view clash against one of the world’s top pound-for-pound fighters.

Usyk (17-0, 13 KOs) cleaned out the entire cruiserweight division, beating every notable fighter to unify all four of the WBA, WBC, IBF & WBO belts.

He has since moved up to heavyweight and beat Chazz Witherspoon last October, but now faces his first serious test in the top weight class.

Mark Robinson/Matchroom

Derek Chisora has re-established himself as a solid heavyweight contender

Usyk said: “Boxing in Manchester in 2018 [against Tony Bellew] was an amazing experience, now I get to do it in London at the famous O2 Arena and I can’t wait to fight in front of the British fans once again.

“As a cruiserweight, I reached the highest heights as undisputed champion and now I am following the same path as a heavyweight.

“I expect a real test in Chisora – he is strong, tough and resilient. I recall being an amateur and watching his fight with Vitali Klitschko. It seemed so big and far away.

“Now I am myself taking a fight against Chisora. I am working hard in my training camp to show a spectacular performance on May 23. Dear friends, I will see you soon!”

Chisora said: “WAR is coming. Usyk reckons he can step up and survive with the big boys.

“He may be the undisputed cruiserweight champion of the world, but on May 23 he will find out what it feels like to be hit by a real heavyweight.

“He is coming to my backyard, I’m going to remind him exactly why he hid in the cruiserweight division and also get revenge for my boy, Tony Bellew. This will be WAR.”

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