Mike Tyson has joined the growing chorus calling for Oleksandr Usyk to fight Agit Kabayel again, amid continued uncertainty over the heavyweight champion’s future plans.

Appearing in a video posted to Kabayel’s Instagram account from the Berlin meeting, Tyson made his position clear.

“Come Usyk, come for us, baby. We need that money, baby, come for us,” said the former undisputed heavyweight champion.

The news came as Kabayel once again tried to get Usyk’s attention after years of working towards an opportunity he felt he already deserved.

Kabayel is getting more and more impatient

The undefeated German has been establishing himself as a must-see over the years and was officially confirmed by the WBC as Usyk’s next challenger following the champion’s controversial victory over Rico Verhoeven at the Pyramids of Giza.

WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman has already stated that the fight should take place before the end of the year.

“Agit is the WBC interim champion and mandatory challenger to Oleksandr Usyk,” Sulaiman said. “He deserved his stripes.”

Despite this position, the situation is still not uncomplicated.

Usyk still has a huge advantage as the heavyweight division’s biggest dynamic attraction and could, however, opt for a more lucrative rematch with Verhoeven.

The Germans are waiting

Klitschko’s former manager Bernd Boente recently told WBN that the Usyk vs. Kabayel will be the main event in Germany.

Boente believes the country’s enormous Ukrainian population would aid create a stadium atmosphere not seen in German boxing since Klitschko’s days.

Usyk’s fight with Kabayel would live up to all expectations. The German gets the chance he deserves, Usyk fulfills his mandatory duty, and Germany becomes one of the biggest heavyweight events in years.

Whether this will happen is a completely different matter.

Master without a punch?

If Usyk chooses Rico Verhoeven’s bigger payday instead, Kabayel could become heavyweight champion without pulling any punches.

The irony is that the opportunity he has been chasing for years may come through paperwork rather than victory in the ring.

This result would immediately create another problem. The German heavyweight champion is a valuable commodity, but filling a football stadium in the first defense requires the right opponent.

Former WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder remains one of the few names available who could turn his title defense into a major event in Germany if the Usyk fight falls through.

Wilder is ranked seventh in the WBC rankings as of June 2026.

For now, however, Kabayel is focusing on the champion himself.

The WBC has already confirmed he is the mandatory challenger to Usyk, Boente believes the fight should take place at a German stadium, and Mike Tyson has publicly joined the campaign.

The final decision now rests with Usyk, even though Iron Mike publicly supported Kabayel’s call.

About the author

Phil Jay is the editor-in-chief of World Boxing News (WBN) and a boxing veteran with over 15 years of experience. Read the full biography.

“My answer is to talk to Robert Garcia and Bam, you know, it’s one fight at 118 pounds,” Hearn told DAZN Boxing after Rodriguez stopped Vargas in six rounds to win the WBA bantamweight title. “We also have Chispa Medina. This is a great unification fight that must be fought between the two of them.”

The comments show a different perspective on the debate that has been raging around Bam Rodriguez since his last victory. A lot of attention was focused on the Naoya Inoue fight, especially after trainer Robert Garcia indicated that he would prefer Bam have one more fight before moving on to fight the undisputed super bantamweight champion.

If Garcia remains committed to keeping Rodriguez at bantamweight for his next fight, Medina (27-4, 19 KO) would be a logical option. Instead of competing in a non-title fight, Rodriguez would have the opportunity to unify the WBA and WBO championships in just his second appearance at 118 pounds.

Rodriguez (25-0, 18 KO) moved up from super flyweight to dethrone Antonio Vargas by sixth-round knockout in Glendale, Arizona, becoming a three-division world champion at the age of 26.

Hearn later reminded fans that the main goal remains a future fight with Inoue.

“The deal has to be right. The offer has to be right,” Hearn said. “I know Bam will do it, without a doubt. Robert will do it too. But we have a long-term future in this sport. Belts up for grabs at 118 pounds.”

Hearn’s comments changed the discussion about Rodriguez’s next move. Rather than speculate on Inoue’s future showdown, promoter Matchroom considered WBO champion Christian “Chispa” Medina as a realistic option for Bam’s next fight.

Roy Jones Jr named another Hall of Famer whose speed would pose major problems if they ever collided in the ring.

The American had remarkable speed himself, particularly during his dominant run between middleweight and airy heavyweight, with his only defeat coming against Montell Griffin in 1997.

Even then, Jones was only disqualified for punching Griffin while he was on one knee, and eventually won the rematch via first-round stoppage later that year.

Regardless of this flaw, the pound-for-pound legend was almost untouchable throughout his prime, yet he admits that fellow icon Sugar Ray Leonard would have been a tough matchup.

While Jones was arguably most effective at 168 to 175 pounds, Leonard scored two of his most crucial victories – against Tommy Hearns and Roberto Duran – at 147 pounds.

He then moved up to middleweight and, most importantly, he won a razor-thin split decision against Marvin Haglerbefore a rematch with Hearns at the 164-pound catchweight in 1989.

At this point, Leonard had everything behind him, and yet even at middleweight, “Sugar Ray” would be considered a fierce opponent for Jones.

In a social media clip reposted by BeeBoxJones explains that Leonard’s speed and malice would cause him problems.

“I never really wanted to fight [Leonard]. I knew that [against] a swift fighter like him, the jab is your problem – you can’t [keep] punch in the face.

“If you let him move around and do what he wants [wants to] do this, he will beat you because he is very compact tempered and very mean.

Ultimately, Leonard ultimately retired following a loss to Hector Camacho in 1997, though admittedly both he and Jones were shadows of their former selves before they hung up the gloves.