How Oleksandr Usyk is using blockchain to punch above his weight in the boxing industry

World champion boxer Oleksandr Usyk is leading the boxing industry forward with a new blockchain-based Web3 platform that connects fighters with each other and helps them grow their fan base.

Ready to Fight (RTF) calls itself “the first boxing web3 app” and as such is built using blockchain and crypto technologies to help athletes find countless matches – a need previously unmet in the boxing world.

Before RTF, finding the right sparring partner was solved through the usual outdated methods of phone books and person-to-person communication.

Cointelegraph traveled to Valencia, Spain to meet with Usyk and the RTF team to better understand why they chose to use Web3 tools to meet the needs of the boxing community.

During the press conference, Usyk explained that from the beginning of his career, he had a vision of what this application would be, because it is a great need when looking for a partner in the boxing industry.

Speaking to Cointelegraph, Usyk said:

“At the beginning of my career, there was no Internet. We went to different gyms to ask and find out about things. [fighters] They were ready. Now we want to make everything more simple; Simply open Ready to Fight, make a few clicks, check open gyms and ask who's ready to spar. that's all.”

Usyk then displayed his own profile on the app, which was filled with messages from his fans and followers, which were sent directly to his phone's inbox. Some asked for frugal advice.

These days, all of his sparring partners are found through the RTF app, and now other teams and fighters are following suit, he said. A successful example of this was seen when we met 25-year-old Steven Torres, an amateur fighter from Reading, Pennsylvania.

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Torres describes how he grew up in a disadvantaged area in the United States and never had access to such environments before in his life. He found the RTF app through an Instagram ad and says logging in is “very easy.” It was then that the magic connections began to happen. he said:

“I uploaded videos, and they got to me. I agreed to the terms to compete with Usyk. It's a privilege to be here walking alongside one of my favorite fighters. It is a dream to be in the camp with him and to share the ring with him.

The app has allowed him to build his own fan base, accumulating more likes and endorsements than Instagram.

Web3 connects to Box.

Asked if he had ever interacted with crypt or Web3 before getting into the app, Torres said he had never used crypto before RTF, but said the integrations put him in the “right place” to start the app. .

RTF Chief Marketing Officer Alan Duran says onboarding new Web3 users is one of the main challenges they face with the platform.

“I think that's our challenge as a platform – how to educate users who are coming in and are not crypto-natives. It is very important to us to be honest and practical while maintaining the utility for our users.

Instead of building using Web2 technology, USIC himself stated that he chose to make a platform based on Web3 as follows.

“We are attracted to blockchain because it is secure and convenient. [to scale]. If you want to be the best, work with the best.”

For now, Duran said, the team is looking to make an impact with the app in the boxing world and then take it to other sports.

From MMA and karate to judo, “the universe can be very open to any kind of contact sports,” he said. At the end of the day, it's all about the same thing: connecting people.

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