'I like to just be a simple guy. I don't want to be an icon'

Oleksandr Usyk boosted the morale of Ukrainian soldiers by beating Fury once before and is in mood to do it again

- Donald McRae

Oleksandr Usyk, the world heavyweight champion, carries himself with such a light and humorous touch that it is easy to forget the burden of responsibility bearing down on him. As Ukraine's war against Russia grinds on, Usyk knows that millions are relying on him to spread a rare flurry of good news when he defends his world titles against Tyson Fury late on Saturday night in Riyadh.

Their first fight, in May, which Usyk won on a split decision, produced a battle for the ages, but Usyk has to be prompted gently to discuss the impact of his achievements on Ukraine's morale. "Of course I was speaking with Ukrainian soldiers, with my friends who are now protecting my country, about the fight," Usyk says. "I will tell you one story. There is the frontline where the fighting is taking place. And the guys on the second line, they have special communications connecting them to the frontline of the battlefield. They have nicknames like 'Rocket'."

Usyk grins as he acts out the conversations on the battlefield after he defeated Fury. "They would be saying: 'Rocket, Rocket, can you hear me?' The intonation [of the soldiers called Rocket and other nicknames] was very serious when they first took the phone. They were like: 'Yes, yes, what's going on? What do we need to do?' They were thinking it was an emergency to do with the war but then they got the information that I was the undisputed champion and they started cheering like: 'Oh yeah! OK!'"