Ukrainian soldier's letter from the front lines moves Oleksandr Usyk to tears ahead of Tyson Fury rematch: "We are rooting for you"

Oleksandr Usyk received a heartfelt letter from a Ukrainian soldier wishing him luck ahead of the high-profile title rematch with Tyson Fury. The message pushed Usyk to the brink of tears as the boxer vowed to treasure the note forever.

In a conversation with the Daily Mail ahead of the fight, Usyk reflected on his childhood, boxing career, and early life struggles that made him the man he is today. At the end of the interview, the outlet gave Usyk a parting Christmas gift - a handwritten letter from a Ukrainian soldier fighting on the front lines of the war with Russia.

Incidentally, the soldier shared his first name with Usyk. According to the report, the heavyweight boxer was visibly moved by the soldier's words. After reading it twice, his eyes welled up as he thanked the reporter in an emotional voice:

"Thank you, this means so much. This gives me extra motivation. This is a real man, a real soldier [who] is supporting my country, [who] is helping me and the people of Ukraine. I'm very thankful to Oleksandr and our Ukrainian soldiers who are supporting my country and fighting to protect it. I do this for them."

Before wrapping up the interview, Usyk told the reporter that he would cherish the letter forever.

Usyk himself had taken up arms in the war and joined a territorial defense battalion in Ukraine before refocusing on boxing for the Anthony Joshua rematch.

Read the Ukrainian soldier's letter to Usyk below, as reported by the Daily Mail:

"Dear Mr. Oleksandr. My name is also Oleksandr, my callsign is 'Shket (Kid/Lad)'. I am a fighter of the tactical special forces unit GRIM of the 41st separate brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

My brothers and I watch all your fights whenever possible and wholeheartedly root for you. We are proud that the glory of Ukrainian boxing is now resounding so loudly. It has always been very important, and now every victory of Ukraine is priceless.

We know what hard work is and what every victory is worth, in the ring or the steppes of Donbas.

My brothers and I defended Kyiv, then fought at Bakhmut, and liberated Kherson. You inspire us, and we will be worthy of Ukrainian glory and all who work for this.

We are rooting for you. We wish you victory and success. This time we will root for you again. I hope you will feel our support even from afar. All our efforts will lead to the main thing - to our Common victory!

We keep our fingers crossed for you, we pray, we wish you success! Together to victory!"

---

Oleksandr Usyk reveals how he plans to end the Tyson Fury rematch

In the aforementioned interview, Oleksandr Usyk revealed that while he did not deliberately refrain from knocking Fury out as some fans claim, he will seek every opportunity to finish the Brit in the rematch:

"Against [Tyson] Fury, it wasn't me who decided [the outcome] - it was the heavenly virtues who decided this was the way I would win [split decision not KO]. But, if I have an opportunity to knock out Tyson Fury in the rematch, I will take it."

Usyk is staking his WBA, WBC, and WBO world heavyweight titles against Fury in the upcoming contest. The two are set to meet on Saturday, Dec. 21 at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

With the split decision victory in the first fight, Usyk became the first undisputed heavyweight champion since Lennox Lewis in 1999. It also marked Fury's first professional defeat.

Usyk had to release the IBF title to Daniel Dubois, who later defended it against Anthony Joshua.