May 19th 2024.
Anthony Joshua sat ringside, alongside soccer superstar Cristiano Ronaldo, to watch the highly-anticipated undisputed heavyweight fight between Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury on Saturday night. And just like many other spectators, Joshua was convinced that Usyk had done enough to secure the victory over Fury.
Usyk, who had previously taken the IBF, WBO, and WBA titles from Joshua in 2021, added the WBC heavyweight belt to his collection after winning via split decision in Saudi Arabia. Despite Fury being ahead on two of the judges' scorecards after eight rounds, Usyk shocked the Gypsy King with a powerful overhand left in the ninth round. The resulting flurry of punches forced Fury to take a standing count, ultimately leading to Usyk's win.
Even though Fury was able to win the final round on all three judges' scorecards, it was too late as Usyk had already secured the victory with scores of 115-112 and 114-113. When asked for his thoughts on the fight, a visibly impressed Joshua immediately replied, "Usyk."
In an interview after the fight, Joshua's promoter Eddie Hearn revealed that Joshua had thought Usyk was the clear winner. "I come over and said, 'what do you think?' He went, 'Usyk won it easy.' I had it quite close, he went, 'pfft,'" Hearn shared.
Hearn also expressed his own surprise at Usyk's performance, stating, "I thought Fury boxed fantastically well the first six rounds of the fight, I thought he was well on his way to boxing to a stoppage or a points decision, and Usyk...just incredible, I can't believe it."
When asked if Usyk's win changes any potential plans for Joshua, Hearn responded, "Not really, this is their night tonight. We want to regain the world heavyweight title, so whoever has got it has got it. But the rematch is a big fight."
Hearn also mentioned that the rematch between Joshua and Usyk could potentially be set for October, as long as both fighters agree to it. However, Hearn made it clear that their focus right now is on regaining the world heavyweight title, regardless of who holds it.
Meanwhile, Joshua is also in contention to potentially fight the winner of the upcoming June 1 fight between Deontay Wilder and Zhilei Zhang. But for now, all eyes are on the rematch between Joshua and Usyk, which is shaping up to be another thrilling and highly-anticipated showdown.
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