I’m an ex-world boxing champion who shoots Russians… I was more scared in the ring

AN EX-WORLD champion boxer nicknamed “The Razor” has thrown his skilled hands into the war in Ukraine to fight Putin’s forces.

But for former light middleweight king Serhiy Dzinziruk, shooting Russians is a far easier task than any fight he has ever seen in the ring.

6

6

6

Dzinziruk courageously enlisted in the Kiev Territorial Defense Unit Ukraine after seeing the horrors of war unfold on his doorstep.

He was soon appointed unit commander and reserve officer – a role in which he flourished as the fighting intensified.

Speaking about his daily wartime routine, the 47-year-old said: “We have two machine guns, a searchlight and night vision goggles.

“When the siren goes off, we take positions, wait for the Shaheds. Our job is to destroy them. We only shoot our zone at 45 degrees.

“We were trained for about a month and learned to shoot with different weapons. Boys returning from the front for treatment taught us all the basics of military art.”

After becoming an integral part of his unit, the former world champion continues to fight Putin’s forces on the front lines to this day.

But his current situation in cramped trenches is a far cry from his old life inside the ropes.

Dzinziruk made it clear that despite the idea that barbaric warfare was a far cry from his usual technically perfect boxing skills, he found one much scarier than the other.

He said this in an interview with UP Sports: “I did not take seriously the threat of a large-scale invasion. I did not prepare for this, but when I entered the ring, preparation for championship fighting lasted two to three months.

“There is time to study the opponent, think about the scenario of the upcoming match and get a little excited. In our work there is no time for that. So I was more worried in the ring.”

The best heavyweight of a generation Wladimir Klitschko previously called Dzinziruk “one of the most technical boxers in the world”.

This expert ability to punch and not be hit by his formidable opponents earned Dzinziruk an impressive 37 wins in his 40-fight career.

He was also nicknamed “The Razor” due to his unique ability to leave almost all of his opponents with nasty cuts on their faces from his lightning-fast hands.

From 1999 through 2010, Dzinziruk was undefeated with a perfect 37-0 record.

He managed to take the WBO Inter-Continental, European and then the light middleweight title in this incredible run.

Dzinziruk even gave Putin a stern warning: “For his crimes against millions of Ukrainians, he should die slowly and painfully.”

When asked which other Ukrainian fighters he would like to fight alongside him in the war, Dzinziruk mentioned no fewer than five names of former world champions and one current one in Oleksandr Usyk.

His other four were Vitali and Wladimir Klitschko and Andrii Kotelnyk and Yura Nuzhnenko.

BOXERS ON THE FRONT LINE

Oleksandr Usyk, the fearless, undefeated father of three, followed in Dzinziruk’s footsteps and also enlisted in the Kiev Territorial Defense when war first broke out.

The world champion says he lost friends, was separated from family and even saw people die through binoculars as he helped.

He explained: “Through binoculars, from 900 meters away, I saw my enemies running, exploding tanks and destroyed houses. I saw people without legs and arms.

“I saw people walking, but they looked like they were dead.

“As I drove through the city in the car, I realized it was a dead city. I saw children’s toys and playgrounds, but everything looked dead, there was no energy in the city.”

But perhaps the biggest ex-boxer to have signed up to fight in Ukraine is Wladimir Klitschko.

Wladimir has refused a comeback to boxing in recent years, vowing to fight on the front lines.

He enlisted in the Ukrainian reserve army in early February and has publicly called on Russia to end the war.

However, his brother Vitali has done the most for Ukraine since the Russian invasion two years ago.

The former heavyweight ruler, 50, last fought in 2012 and retired a year later to focus on politics.

The father of three children, who married his wife Natalie in 1996, has been mayor of Kiev since 2014.

And as a result, the ex-boxer was left with ‘no choice’ but to take up arms.

He told ITV: “I have no other choice. I have to do that. I will fight.”

Masterful southpaw Vasiliy Lomachenko, 34, is one of the greatest amateur boxers of all time, leaving the unpaid ranks with a record of 396-1 and two Olympic gold medals.

But he also pledged his loyalty to his country and decided to continue fighting on the Ukrainian front line instead of on the boxing line.

Oleksandr Onyshchenko, part of the country’s national team, was killed in a battle last year near the besieged city of Bakhmut.

6

6

6