Oleksandr Usyk has continued his preparations for his highly anticipated undisputed heavyweight fight with Tyson Fury, despite the contest being pushed back until May.
Usyk and Fury were due to meet on February 17 for all four heavyweight belts in Saudi Arabia, but the clash was delayed after Fury suffered a cut in sparring.
It has now been rescheduled for May 18, with both fighters agreeing to cough up £8m if they pull out.
Despite the fight now being more than three months away, Usyk showed that his preparations are continuing.
The Ukrainian shared a clip on Instagram of him receiving a series of body shots during a brutal training session in a gym.
Oleksandr Usyk shared a clip of him receiving a series of body shots in a training session
The heavyweight champion exhaled after taking the blows as he prepares to face Tyson Fury
The duo had been scheduled to fight in Riyadh on February 17 but was postponed after Fury sustained an injury during camp
Usyk, who holds the WBA, WBO and IBF heavyweight belts, was seen clapping the hand of his training partner and exhaling after receiving the blows.
The clip appeared to illustrated Usyk’s continued preparations to face Fury, with the Gyspy King expected to test the Ukrainian with a series of body shots in their upcoming clash.
Usyk last year it back at claims that he can’t handle body shots following his controversial clash with Daniel Dubois.
The heavyweight world champion retained his belts by stopping Dubois in the ninth round of their clash back in August.
Though he dominated the bout, he was in real distress in the fifth round as he slumped to the canvas after Dubois landed a heavy shot on the beltline.
Usyk was given four minutes to recover from, though his opponent did not have a point deducted.
Fury had mocked his rival on social media by wearing a pair of boxing shorts pulled up exceptionally high – referencing the controversy over Usyk’s trunks on the night.
WARNING – GRAPHIC CONTENT
Oleksandr Usyk (pictured) admitted that he holds no grudges towards Tyson Fury despite the postponement of their undisputed title fight
Tyson Fury sustained a nasty laceration above his right eye which has postponed his next fight
While Usyk may still be preparing for Fury, he has been training ahead of a possible match-up against IBF mandatory challenger Filip Hrgovic.
Reports had suggested Usyk could face Hrgovic on February 17, when his flight with Fury had been due to take place.
Despite the postponement of the fight, unified WBO, WBA and IBF heavyweight champion Usyk recently claimed he ‘loved’ Fury even more.
According to Sky Sports, Usyk said, ‘Of course, more. Why? Because it’s the man who has my fourth belt. It’s the man who helped me become famous a lot.
‘Because we, all people, must love friends, [people who are] not friends, acquaintances, all people. It’s great when you are polite, not dirty.’
Usyk also recently revealed that he missed the birth of his fourth child in order to prepare for his bout with Fury.
Usyk had been training in Spain for the bout and was so focused on his preparations that he missed the birth of his daughter in Ukraine last Thursday.