Oleksandr Usyk crushes Anthony Joshua to defend the unified WBO, WBA and IBF titles
Oleksandr Usyk retained his world heavyweight belts with a split decision victory over Anthony Joshua in their rematch on Saturday in Saudi Arabia. It was Usyk’s fourth fight in the category.
Almost 10,000 people attended “Rage on the Red Sea” at the King Abdullah Sports City Arena, which was also attended by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud. Sports Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal hailed the Ukrainian champion and appreciated the effort of his British opponent. The prince also complimented both combatants for putting on an amazing battle for the Jeddah audience and the millions of people watching across the world.
Usyk, 35, who knocked out the reigning champion in London last year, met an improved Joshua but outboxed him once more to set up a possible unification fight with Britain’s Tyson Fury. Usyk’s victory extended his unblemished professional record to 20 fights, while Joshua, suffered his third setback of his career.
Usyk is a unique boxer who may be the finest pound-for-pound fighter in the world. He’s now fought 24 rounds against Joshua, one of the sport’s most powerful active punchers, and has never been knocked down. He was only harmed once, in that crucial ninth round. Usyk is not a runner, as some believe everyone who boxed with his or her head is. He remained in front of Joshua all night, waiting to be hit, but his knowledge of the game and skill to build traps kept him safe. He stung Joshua numerous times and landed a lot of them. Usyk was just in his fourth bout as a heavyweight, but he was crushing Joshua and had him reeling on several occasions.
The stakes were higher than ever, with Usyk representing a country fighting for its survival following Russia’s invasion in February, and Joshua fighting for his boxing career.
Oleksandr Usyk remained in the pocket for for 36 minutes, challenging one of the hardest striking heavyweights in recent memory to strike him. To avoid the bombs thrown by former champion Anthony Joshua, Usyk would duck his head, slide his torso to the right, or glide a step to the left. Usyk’s skill extends beyond his excellent defence. It’s his total boxing talent, which he demonstrated by giving out far more than he took in. When he got punched once, he always responded with two, three, or four of his own.
As the final bell sounded at the King Abdullah Sports City Arena, Usyk seemed to be comfortably ahead. However, the American judge scored the fight 115-113 for Joshua, while the British and Ukrainian judges scored it 115-113 and 116-112 for Usyk, respectively.
“The victory was extremely important for me, my teams, and my country,” Usyk said at the press conference. “It was definitely a different fight in spite of my ability to control my emotions. I was worrying a bit since, in round eight, I believe I saw in Joshua’s eyes that he was feeling victorious and in round nine he surprised me. I just kept telling myself, ‘You cannot stop, you cannot stop.’ Some big things were at stake tonight and, in the end, the belts are coming back to Ukraine.”
At the conclusion of the match, Joshua grabbed Usyk, embraced him, and draped Usyk’s Ukrainian flag over their shoulders.
I’ll be the first to admit, I let my self down. I acted out of pure passion and emotion and when not controlled it ain’t great.
I love this sport so so much and I’ll be better from this point on.
Respect
— Anthony Joshua (@anthonyjoshua) August 21, 2022
Anthony Joshua has admitted that he let himself down in the ring after losing the heavyweight belt to Oleksandr Usyk. The Ukrainian boxer triumphed on a split points decision after the duo fought the full 12 rounds, which finished with Joshua throwing two of the title belts over the ropes and storming off.
“I wish @usykaa continued success in your quest for greatness. You are a class act champ,” he said. Yesterday I had to mentally take myself into a dark place to compete for the championship belts! I had two fights, one with Usyk and one with my emotions and both got the better of me. I’ll be the first to admit, I let my self down.I acted out of pure passion and emotion and when not controlled it ain’t great. I love this sport so so much and I’ll be better from this point on. Respect,” he added.
After Joshua’s expletive-laden speech inside the ring, Usyk remarked: “He just showed his frustrations which is a common human emotion. I feel nothing but respect for him, and I expect myself to stay humble no matter what circumstances I am in.”
