He did so by ascending the pound-for-pound throne with a pair of convincing wins apiece over former heavyweight champions Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua. Usyk even added a couple of knockout wins over Daniel Dubois, another ex-titleholder.

The Ukrainian turned 39 in January and told me during a December interview in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, that he plans to fight only a few more times. His legacy is secure.

An Olympic gold medal, in the conversation for greatest cruiserweight ever and a real case as a top 10 boxer all time in the sport’s glamour division.

If anyone deserves to write the end of their story in boxing, it’s Usyk. And if he wants to fight a legendary kickboxer, so be it. Usyk’s next fight was unveiled Friday, a May 23 clash with longtime kickboxing heavyweight champion Rico Verhoeven.

The location, though, is the real attraction here alongside Usyk: The Pyramids of Giza in Egypt. A heavyweight championship fight at such a global landmark? Sign me up. That’s not to suggest Verhoeven will pull off the upset or that he’ll even be competitive.

There isn’t a single heavyweight on the planet you’d favor over Usyk. Not even at 39. His form remains as impressive as ever.

He easily dispatched of Dubois in July, Usyk’s most-recent performance. And he did so four rounds sooner than their August 2023 meeting. Usyk discussed his desire to fight Deontay Wilder in the spring. Why?

Despite Wilder’s current form — two wins in his last six fights — Usyk fancied the matchup because he’s one of the heavyweight stars of his era. Years from now, it could look good on Usyk’s resume. Surely no one was going to pick Wilder (who will instead face Derek Chisora next month) over Usyk.

The main complaint, besides Verhoeven not being an accomplished boxer, seems to be the absence of a fight with Agit Kabayel. And it’s true, Kabayel has earned a shot at Usyk with a string of impressive wins. Most notably, Kabayel stopped Zhilei Zhang one year ago.

Hopefully Kabayel lands his shot at Usyk later this year. But even if he doesn’t, it’s understandable from Usyk’s standpoint. He’s virtually cleaned out the heavyweight division. There will always be new fighters who rise to the occasion and make a legitimate case for a title shot.

Joseph Parker was another until he was upset by Fabio Wardley. And now, Wardley is perhaps another, if he can score an impressive win over Dubois in May.

Yet another deserving heavyweight, in due time, could be Moses Itauma. Just 21, he certainly looks like the goods. And already, there have been calls for a showdown with Usyk. The champion responded that he’s not ready yet.

Many will argue Verhoeven will never be ready. But that’s not what this event is about. Verhoeven left Glory Kickboxing, the sport’s top promotion, after an 11-year run as champion. He’s a star in kickboxing and will add some name recognition to the spectacle of a fight at the pyramids.

This sort of crossover event harkens back to Tyson Fury-Francis Ngannou, the former UFC heavyweight champion making his pro boxing debut. I didn’t think much of Ngannou’s chances. Figured Fury would flatten him in a few rounds. Instead, Ngannou shockingly knocked down Fury and dropped a split decision.

Again, that’s not to suggest Verhoeven has any such chance at the upset. Fury didn’t take Ngannou seriously during training camp. Everything known about Usyk’s level of dedication tells us he’ll train hard with discipline and focus like he always does.

We won’t have many more opportunities to watch one of the all-time greats, so enjoy Usyk while he’s here. And take this event for what it is: a legendary boxer defending the heavyweight championship against another star athlete at, of all places, the Pyramids of Giza.

This is show business when it’s all said and done.