Adam Kownacki long ago acknowledged everything that led to the lone defeat of his career.

Moving on from that moment—a stunning fourth-round stoppage at the hands of Robert Helenius last March at Barclays Center in his Brooklyn home base—wasn’t difficult. Having to wait nearly two years to avenge his only pro loss, however, provided a little bit more of a challenge.

“The delay in getting to the rematch taught me to put my trust in time,” Kownacki told BoxingScene.com of the career-long 19-month layoff heading into his October 9 rematch with Helenius. “These things happen and I really couldn’t do anything about that. I just had to trust that we would get to the fight. That’s what my team has been working on nonstop since [last March]. I just focused on doing my job and let them do theirs.”

Kownacki (20-1, 15KOs) boasts a powerhouse team that includes manager Keith Connolly and adviser Al Haymon, two of the most influential figures in the sport who helped position the Polish heavyweight into title contention. The journey was momentarily derailed after Kownacki—a huge crowd favorite in Brooklyn—suffered the stunning loss to Finland’s Helenius (30-3, 19KOs). His team has remained hard at work in securing a home for the rematch

The year-plus long search led to an undercard placement of the previously scheduled July 24 trilogy clash between lineal/WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury (30-0-1, 21KOs) and former WBC titlist Deontay Wilder (42-1-1, 41KOs) atop a planned ESPN+/Fox Sports Pay-Per-View from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Those plans were stalled once England’s Fury reportedly tested positive for Covid-19, causing a postponement.

The next available date for the show was October 9, putting a full 19 months in between the first fight and the rematch. It wasn’t an ideal situation, though it puts both Kownacki and Helenius—who hasn’t fought since scoring the upset win—at the same disadvantage.

“I’m not worried about being out the ring because he has been, too,” notes Kownacki. “I used the time to my advantage, training almost nonstop and focusing on being in much better shape. We took a couple of weeks off here and there once the fight would get pushed back, but never falling into (bad) habits.

The main thing has been remaining in shape and staying ready for this opportunity.”

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox