Why Fabio Wardley feared for his life before he sparred Oleksandr Usyk

Fast-rising British heavyweight Fabio Wardley could be just one win away from challenging Oleksandr Usyk for the undisputed heavyweight world championship in boxing, providing he defeats Joseph Parker in an effective eliminator on Saturday, the 25th of October, inside London’s 02 Arena.

As a former WBO heavyweight champion, and a fighter who has shared the ring with Anthony Joshua, Dillian Whyte, Derek Chisora, Deontay Wilder, and Zhilei Zhang, Parker is by far the more experienced boxer. However, Wardley, at 30, is unbeaten, has knockout power in his mitts, and has breezed through the likes of David Adeleye, Frazer Clarke, and Justis Huni to date.

The match-up is a crucial one for the heavyweight landscape as it provides a new opponent for Usyk, who has lapped the competition twice already. But, as Wardley tells it, he, too, is a familiar fighter for the dominant Ukrainian. It all dates back to 2018 when Wardley went over to Usyk’s country to spar him, and it’s an experience the Englishman will never forget.

Fabio Wardley Reveals What it’s Really Like Sparring Oleksandr Usyk

A clear generational talent, Usyk has long dominated the opposition in boxing regardless of whether he’s campaigned as an amateur, having won back-to-back gold medals at the World Amateur Championships in 2011 and the Olympic Games in 2012, together with the abundance of world championships he won as a pro at both cruiserweight and heavyweight.

And so when Wardley received a random invitation on Facebook to spar Usyk from an apparent team member seven years ago, he didn’t know what to believe. It was in broken English, but when Wardley ran it through his manager, they quickly realized it was legit. So Wardley made the trip.

“I arrived at the airport, and they had a guy with my name on a bit of paper. He didn’t say a word, just nodded and actioned me to follow him to his white van which had no windows. We drove for 45 minutes and the guy never spoke.”

The unique situation made Wardley fear for his life, he told The Guardian.

Wardley, of course, was fine. He met Usyk the following day, they trained together, laughed, and even dined with one another after their sparring sessions. “I’d built this picture in my head of how it was going to be really strict and regimented, but he was dancing and laughing and messing around … he’s a great guy.”

On the level of the sparring, Wardley said: “I don’t know if I caught him that well but, a couple of times, I landed. He definitely made me pay but it was an incredible experience for three weeks. We all went for dinner every night, and he was really nice and inclusive.”

As for the likelihood that he could be fighting Usyk in the very near future, he simply said: “Fingers crossed.”

All he has to do is defeat Parker this weekend. The event airs live on DAZN.