Oleksandr Usyk used his public workout for Saturday’s clash with Anthony Joshua to display his lightening-fast reactions through a trick involving four coins.
Standing in the centre of the ring at the Saudi Airlines Club, the Ukrainian unified heavyweight champion lined the coins up on his hand, wrist and arm before flicking them into the air and catching each one.
It was an impressive display of dexterity and was the centrepiece of a 10-minute session that also included some dance moves.
He wore a T-shirt showing the colours of the Ukrainian flag with the slogan ‘Colours of Freedom’, a reference to his nation’s war with Russia.
At Monday’s arrival event, he carried under his arm a stuffed toy donkey that was given to him by his daughter before he joined the war effort, from which he was eventually given dispensation to defend his WBA, IBF and WBO belts in Jeddah.
Joshua hit the pads with new trainer Robert Garcia while assistant coach Angel Fernandez watched from the corner and, when questioned at the end of the session, the fallen champion predicted he would knock Usyk out in their rematch.
“Previous experience against him is helpful but it’s all about the night, so I don’t know how much it will help,” Joshua said.
“From all my experiences I have learned liked a sponge, but ultimately Saturday night is a fight and that’s what it’s all about, that’s it. I’ll just do my best, that’s all I can do.”
Oleksandr Usyk v Anthony Joshua 2: Who is favourite and what are the odds?
Oleksandr Usyk is odds-on favourite with Sky Bet to retain his belts but Anthony Joshua won't be short of support at 13/8.
- Usyk to win: 1/2
By decision: 13/8
By KO/TKO: 15/8 - Joshua to win: 7/4
By decision: 7/1
By KO/TKO: 9/4 - Draw: 20/1
Sky Bet have a full range of RequestABets and many other markets by clicking here.
Oleksandr Usyk v Anthony Joshua 2: Date, start time, TV channel and cost
The blockbuster rematch is taking place on Saturday, August 20 at at King Abdullah Sports City, also nicknamed The Shining Jewel, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
The undercard is expected to begin from around 1800 BST, with the main event to start between 2230 BST and 2300 BST.
The fight will be shown on Sky Sports Box Office (Sky channel 491) and Sky Sports Box Office HD (Sky channel 492), with their broadcast starting from 1800 BST and will cost £26.95 for UK customers and €31.95 for Republic of Ireland customers.
You can also listen to the fight on talkSPORT.
Oleksandr Usyk v Anthony Joshua 2: Running order and undercard
- Oleksandr Usyk v Anthony Joshua (Approx 2230 BST)
WBA (Super), IBF, WBO and IBO heavyweight titles - Callum Smith v Mathieu Bauderlique
Final eliminator for WBC light heavyweight title - Filip Hrgovic v Zhilei Zhang
Final eliminator for IBF heavyweight title - Badou Jack v Richard Rivera
- Ramla Ali v Crystal Garcia Nova
- Andrew Tabiti v Tyrone Spong
- Daniel Lapin v Jozef Jurko
- Ziyad Almaayouf v Jose Alatorre
- MoneyKicks v Paevie (from around 1800 BST)
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