A look back at Artur Beterbiev vs. Oleksandr Usyk in their amateur careers

Both Oleksandr Usyk and Artur Beterbiev have carried their impressive amateur descents into their professional careers.

The Ukrainian entered his professional career as a cruiserweight and then became the undisputed champion of his division after only fifteen fights. The Russian is competing as a light-heavyweight and is set to compete against Joe Smith Jr. for the unified world championship.

The boxing stars faced each other three times during their amateur days, which included the 2011 Heavyweight World Championships. Usyk won the matchup in the quarterfinals against Beterbiev.

The winner on the night dominated his opponent throughout the fight but as the final round neared the end, Beterbiev landed a devastating body shot. The heavy shot dropped Usyk to his knee but he stood back up and finished the fight well.

The next significant encounter was at the 2012 Olympic Games, where the Ukrainian beat Beterbiev in the quarterfinals once again. After three rounds, the southpaw secured a 17-13 points win.

In 2007, however, Beterbiev secured a win over Usyk in a light-heavyweight contest. The Russian won by 12-10 on the judge's scorecards after a four-round bout..

Watch Oleksandr Usyk vs. Artur Beterbiev in 2011 here:

As an amateur, Usyk mostly competed as a heavyweight where he performed against the likes of Joe Joyce to secure an impressive victory. The Ukrainian racked up an amateur record of 335-15 and secured a gold medal at the 2012 Olympics. The heavyweight champion also won a gold medal at the 2011 World Championships in Baku.

Beterbiev held an amateur record of 295-5, won a silver medal at the 2007 World Championships and gold at the 2009 World Championships. Additionally, he won gold at the 2006 and 2010 European Championships. He also reached the quarter-finals of the heavyweight bracket at the 2012 Olympics, where he was beaten by Usyk.

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Artur Beterbiev vs. Oleksandr Usyk as professionals

Artur Beterbiev and Oleksandr Usyk share similar and admirable amateur pedigrees, but they also have emphatic professional careers.

The Russian is yet to be beaten as a professional as he holds a record of 17-0 with 100% of his victories coming be knockout. The heavy-hitting knockout artist is aiming to become the undisputed light-heavyweight champion.

Artur Beterbiev has held the IBF title since 2017 and the WBC title since 2019. If he defeats Joe Smith Jr. on June 18, he will add the WBO title to his collection. Dmitry Bivol holds the WBA world title after defending it against Canelo Alvarez.

Oleksandr Usyk, on the other hand, holds a record of 19-0 with 13 knockouts, giving the 35-year-old a 68.42% knockout rate. Furthermore, the Ukrainian is a two-weight world champion after becoming the undisputed cruiserweight champion. He then went on to defeat Anthony Joshua as a heavyweight to take the WBO, WBA, IBF and IBO world titles.