There didn't look to be many tense moments for Oleksandr Usyk when he captured the IBF, WBA (super), and WBO heavyweight titles from Anthony Joshua in September. 

While he did absorb a fair amount of punishment from Joshua, Usyk controlled the center of the ring, landed the heavier shots, and was the more technical boxer of the two, leading him to become a two-division world champion. With the rematch looming on Aug. 20, Usyk looked back on the first fight and admitted it was more challenging than it appeared. 

“It was a really difficult fight for me,”. “Everybody keeps saying it was an easy walk, but, no, it wasn’t. It was a hard fight for him and for me. After the fight, I came back to the hotel, and I took some food, and I fall asleep sitting [up].”

The rematch was never in question as it was contractually obligated. But the issue of when it'd happen was in question due to Usyk deciding to enter the Ukrainian military in the war against Russia in February. After consulting with people on the front line and others in his inner circle, Usyk decided to leave and start his preparations for his first title defense against the former two-time unified heavyweight champion

“All I did was just pray,” Usyk said. “I did not want to leave Ukraine, but I visited my friends in the military, and I visited them in the hospital. All of them were asking me to participate in this fight, to take the rematch, and to fight for the whole country of Ukraine. Even my wife, I wanted to send her and my kids out of Ukraine, but she said she would not go. [She said,] ‘I would not go, and that’s it.’”