Is Oleksandr Usyk The GOAT After Destroying Daniel Dubois?

Almost instantly after Oleksandr Usyk’s sensational knockout of Daniel Dubois at Wembley Stadium on Saturday, social media went crazy-bananas with GOAT chatter.

The GOAT being Usyk, the unified heavyweight champion. But is it a legitimate consideration? Can we christen Usyk as the new heavyweight GOAT? And if not, where does he rank historically at this moment in his career?

First question first: Is Usyk the GOAT of the heavies? The short answer: No. The long answer: No, no, no, no — NO!

Only a deranged fan-child who doesn’t realize boxing existed before 1999 would believe Usyk to be greater than Muhammad Ali. Usyk has beaten two guaranteed heavyweight Hall of Famers in Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua, and, yes, he beat both twice. Ali scored 11 wins over seven different Hall of Famers, and three of Ali’s victims — Archie Moore, Joe Frazier and George Foreman — are boxing immortals. “The Greatest” eventually went on a stunning 24-1-0 run during the heavyweight division’s Golden Era, with the only loss coming in a split-decision loss to an absolute destroyer, Ken Norton, whom Ali beat twice.

Usyk’s record (24-0-0, 15 KOs) is nearly identical to Ali’s (24-0-0, 19 KOs) at the same point in their respective careers. Beyond their records, Ali and Usyk share other similarities, such as brilliant footwork, masterful defense and an Einstein-level boxing IQ. None of this means Usyk is the new GOAT, and the humble champ wouldn’t even say he is:

Then, what about the No. 2 GOAT? Not quite for Usyk. That spot belongs to Joe Louis, who had 25 consecutive title defenses, a record for all weight classes, and Louis squashed eight Hall of Famers.

Then how does Usyk compare to the next group of heavies on the all-time list? That group includes Fury, Foreman, Rocky Marciano, Evander Holyfield, Lennox Lewis, Mike Tyson, Wladimir Klitschko and Larry Holmes. Most of those fighters had one exploitable flaw: Foreman (too plodding); Tyson (too emotional); Marciano (too small); Klitschko (chin). A prime Lewis got torched by second-tier contenders (Hasim Rahman and Oliver McCall) while Larry Holmes’ jab, as dynamite as it was, would struggle to hit the elusive Usyk. And what about Usyk’s flaw? That would be his limited KO power. But since his destruction of Dubois, Usyk clearly has sneakier power than we presumed.

Usyk’s résumé includes a total of 13 world title fight victories (some at cruiserweight), including two wins apiece over Fury, Joshua and Dubois. He became the first heavyweight to unify the crown since Lewis became the unified champ back in 1999, and he also won Olympic gold in 2012. With all that, Usky’s greatness is indisputable. As boxing scribe Nick Parkinson said: “Usyk’s achievements at heavyweight have surpassed what he managed at cruiserweight, and he has beaten the best of his era.”

So the case could be made: Usyk is the No. 3 heavyweight in the history of the sport. Or maybe a clearer way to look at it: He’s the best heavyweight in the past 20 years. And he isn’t finished. The 38-year-old Ukrainian may fight Fury for a third time or mandatory challenger Joseph Parker. And if he wins, the GOAT chatter will only get louder.

But no mater how we rank them, it doesn’t matter to Usyk. “I’m not best of the best,” he replied after he beat Dubois on Saturday. “I’m just Olek… Ukrainian guy.”