Boxing
Usyk is favourite to beat Joshua again 
Ukraine’s defending champion Oleksandr Usyk is attracting the money ahead of his “Rage on the Red Sea” heavyweight world title rematch with Britain’s Anthony Joshua in Saudi Arabia on Saturday.
British bookmaker William Hill had Usyk as the 4/7 favourite, with 80% of customers backing the Ukrainian to win by knockout or stoppage. Joshua was down as a 13/8 underdog, with a draw at 16/1.
“Most of the commentary around this rematch has been in favour of a Oleksandr Usyk victory, with the Ukrainian being very much the one our customers want to be with ahead of Saturday night,” said Hill spokesman Tony Kenny.
Spread betting firm Sporting Index forecast Usyk would stop Joshua early in the ninth round.
Both men will be fighting for more than a fistful of world heavyweight boxing belts and a bumper payday when they step into the ring in Jeddah.
Undefeated Usyk, putting his WBA, WBO, IBF and IBO belts on the line, will carry the hopes of a nation scarred by battle and fighting a real war for survival after Russia’s invasion.
The 35-year-old, who has served with the Ukrainian army, wore Cossack clothes and stood to sing a patriotic call to arms when the fighters came face to face at a news conference in Jeddah on Wednesday.
“His incentive to take this fight was not his thirst for success or willingness to become the greatest; he took it for his country and for his people, because Ukraine needs victory,” his promoter Alexander Krassyuk told the BBC.Joshua, who lost to Usyk in front of a sell-out home crowd at London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium last September, is fighting for his future.
The 32-year-old may not be heading into retirement if he loses again but his days of big-money title fights could be over.
“It’s up to me at the end of the day, it’s not up to anyone else what I do with my career,” Joshua told reporters this week as retirement questions were asked.
“I don’t have to do this. Why do I do it? It’s because it’s all I know.”
Victory might be enough to make WBC champion Tyson Fury rethink his retirement, opening up the prospect of an all-British showdown for the unified title in what would be box office gold.
Usyk and Joshua will meet for the weigh-in on Friday, with Usyk expected to be considerably heavier than in the first fight with Joshua.
-Reuters
Oleksandr Usyk will put his WBC heavyweight title belt on the line against Dutch kickboxer Rico Verhoeven on May 23 at Egypt’s Pyramids of Giza, Ring Magazine announced on Friday.
The Ukrainian three-times undisputed champion holds the IBF, WBA and WBC titles after vacating the WBO belt.
The 39-year-old has not boxed since beating Britain’s Daniel Dubois at London’s Wembley Stadium last July.
“I respect his (Verhoeven’s) journey – he’s truly the ‘King of Kickboxing’. But this is boxing – a different game, with its own rules and its own kings,” said Usyk, who has a 24-0 record.
“I’m ready and looking forward to meeting him in the ring. It’s going to be a unique experience for both of us, and I know the fans are excited too. A big night is coming.”
The ‘Glory in Giza’ fight will be streamed live on DAZN.
“I spent 12 years as the undisputed heavyweight kickboxing champion and accomplished everything I set out to accomplish,” Verhoeven, 36, told The Ring.
“But staying at the top for that long didn’t take away from the hunger; it strengthened it. Usyk is the undisputed champion in boxing. That’s the kind of challenge that motivated me. Undisputed versus undisputed.”
Verhoeven has sparred in the past with former champion Tyson Fury and had one professional bout in 2014, which he won by a knockout.
-Reuters
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Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao will face off in a professional rematch at the Sphere in Las Vegas in September, with the bout streaming globally on Netflix, the fighters and promoters announced on Monday.
The fight marks Mayweather’s return from retirement and will be the first professional boxing match held at the Sphere.
Mayweather, who holds a perfect 50-0 record with 27 knockouts, defeated Pacquiao in their 2015 encounter dubbed the “Fight of the Century.”
That bout generated a record 4.6 million pay-per-view buys and a $72 million live gate at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.
“I already fought and beat Manny once. This time will be the same result,” Mayweather said in a statement.
Pacquiao, whose record stands at 62-8-3 with 39 knockouts, expressed confidence he would hand Mayweather his first professional loss.
“I want Floyd to live with the one loss on his professional record and always remember who gave it to him,” the Filipino fighter said.
The rematch will stream to Netflix’s more than 325 million subscribers worldwide, continuing the platform’s push into live boxing.
The streaming platform has recently broadcast several high-profile fights, including Jake Paul versus Mike Tyson, which the company said drew 108 million live global viewers
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Former multi-weight world boxing champion Floyd Mayweather will come out of retirement this year for his first official fight in nearly a decade, his new promotion CSI Sports/Fight Sports said on Friday, though his opponent has yet to be decided.
Before his official return, Mayweather is set for an exhibition bout with fellow boxing great Mike Tyson, with the date and venue still to be announced.
“I still have what it takes to set more records in the sport of boxing – from my upcoming Mike Tyson event to my next professional fight afterwards – no one will generate a bigger gate, have a larger global broadcast audience and generate more money with each event – than my events,” Mayweather, 48, said in a statement on his new promotion’s website.
It will mark the American’s fourth comeback from retirement, following previous exits in 2007, 2015 and 2017 — the last after beating Conor McGregor to extend his record to 50-0. He has, however, fought several exhibitions since.
Across a three-decade career, Mayweather defeated many of his era’s top fighters and headlined the three highest‑grossing bouts in history, against Manny Pacquiao, McGregor and Canelo Alvarez.
-Reuters
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