September 27th 2023.
Joe Joyce was on course for a world title shot at the start of the year, but after facing Zhilei Zhang for a second time on Saturday, he now has a major rebuilding job on his hands. The British heavyweight was brutally knocked out in the third round of their rematch by the destructive Chinese fighter, leaving John Fury, father of WBC heavyweight champion Tyson, to express his dismay at Joyce and his team's 'appalling management' for rushing straight back into the rematch.
Fury Snr told The Agency via FreeBets.com: "Joe Joyce didn’t want it from the off. His body language was all over the place, he looked like he was beaten before he got in the ring. He was moving round the ring like a camel, not throwing any worthwhile punches, why didn’t he go for broke at 20 stone and use his strength and power to rough him up? He had no answer to Zhang’s vicious power."
Fury believes Joyce should have taken a few fights to "build his confidence back up, gone back to the drawing board and worked on what he’s good at."
Zhang is now the mandatory challenger for the WBO heavyweight title currently held by Oleksandr Usyk and called out both the Ukrainian and Fury after his victory last weekend. Fury Snr insists Zhang "has the slowest pair of feet I’ve ever seen" and is confident his son would ease to victory if the two were to ever square off.
"With feet like that and movement like that, forget messing with the Gypsy King, you’ll have your head boxed off within 7 rounds," Fury Snr said. "He’s tough Zhang but Tyson can box like a middle weight. Zhilei Zhang’s face would be a mess by four rounds. He wouldn’t be able to see his face would be that damaged. Even if he didn’t go down the referee would call it off."
It's clear that Joyce is facing a major challenge ahead - but one that Fury Snr is confident he can rise to. With the right preparation and strategic approach, Joyce could still one day reach his goal of a world title shot.
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