Boxing
Usyk targets Fury after beating Joshua on split decision
Oleksandr Usyk turned his sights on rival heavyweight world champion Tyson Fury on Sunday after beating Britain’s Anthony Joshua on a split points decision to retain his WBA, WBO, IBF and IBO belts in Jeddah.
The “Rage on the Red Sea” in Saudi Arabia was a rematch of a fight in London in September, which the Ukrainian won on a unanimous decision to take Joshua’s belts, but with more intensity and emotion.
The pressure was on both former Olympic champions, with Usyk this time representing a country fighting for its existence after a Russian invasion while Joshua was battling for his boxing future.
Usyk appeared comfortably ahead as the final bell rang at the King Abdullah Sports City Arena but the American judge surprisingly awarded the fight 115-113 to Joshua.
The British and Ukrainian judgesdecided 115-113 and 116-112 to Usyk.
The victory took the 35-year-old’s professional record to 20 fights undefeated while Joshua, 32, suffered a third defeat in what could prove a watershed in his career.
Joshua, who had held aloft the Ukrainian flag with Usyk as they waited for the decision in what seemed an acceptance of defeat, then had an uncharacteristic meltdown.
He took two of the belts, dropping them as he left the ring and headed for the dressing room before turning around and stepping back between the ropes to take the microphone and address the crowd.
“Usyk is one hell of a fighter. That’s just emotion,” declared the Briton.
“For this guy to beat me tonight, maybe I could have done better but it shows the levels of hard work he must have put in, so please give him a round of applause as our heavyweight champion of the world.
“I was studying Ukraine and all the champions from your amazing country. I’ve never been there. What’s happening there, I don’t know but it’s not nice … under those circumstances he’s managed to become champion.”
SWEAT-SOAKED CANVAS
The opening round was tentative, with Joshua’s corner calling for him to adjust his rhythm, and the bout continued with Usyk using his jab and body shots to good effect.
Round eight was briefly halted for towels to mop the slippery, sweat-soaked canvas but round nine raised the heat again, with Joshua enjoying his best before Usyk came back hard in the 10th.
Needing a knockout and running out of time, the taller and heavier Joshua was unable to land the telling blows against an agile and elusive opponent who hit back hard.
“In the ninth round I thought we had him,” said Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn. “The 10th round was one of the best rounds I’ve seen.
“What Usyk did in the 10th, the 11th and the 12th was incredible and that was the difference tonight because AJ didn’t start fast enough but he fought a much better fight.
“He hurt Usyk badly in the ninth and I felt like he was going to come on strong. But Usyk came out like a train.”
At the final bell the two embraced and the Ukrainian, who had entered the ring in a yellow and blue “Colors of Freedom” top while Joshua was dressed all in black, dropped to his knees.
Usyk’s thoughts then turned to the next chapter and another Briton to beat, although WBC champion Fury has declared himself retired.
“I am convinced he wants to fight me. I want to fight him. And if I’m not fighting Tyson Fury, I’m not fighting at all,” Usyk told the crowd through a ringside interpreter.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy hailed a “difficult but important and necessary victory.”
“Defending a world championship title is a symbol that whoever is from the Cossack tradition will not give up what is his, will fight for it and will win without any doubt,” he wrote on Facebook.
Boxing
Anthony Joshua seeks world title and redemption against Dubois
Anthony Joshua will have his first title-seeking fight as he faces fellow British boxer, Daniel Dubois on Saturday at the Wembley Stadium in London.
It is his first title fight since losing his belt to Ukraine’s Oleksandr Usyk in September 2021.
A win for Joshua on Saturday carries great fortunes. A win makes hm the IBF World Champion. The victory would make him the number one contender to unify the heavyweight division.
Joshua is 34 years old and has an impressive track record. His media presence is huge, especially in the wake of his defeat to Oleksandr Usyk in September 2021.
In an interview with the BBC, he talked about what he has done to get back so close to success.
“I’ve worked hard and I’ve been through a lot of pain and I’ve worked hard to get better,” he said. “I hope those experiences don’t happen again. As you saw that night [after the second Usyk defeat], I don’t like to lose,” he said.
Now another door is opening for a champion whose career shows no signs of slowing down.
Joshua (28-3, 25 KOs) takes on fellow Englishman Daniel Dubois (21-2, 20 KOs). Dubois is 27 years old.
A victory for Joshua would place him in the elite group of boxers who have won the world heavyweight title three times: Vitali Klitschko,Lennox Lewis, Evander Holyfield, Michael Moorer and Muhammad Ali. A place among the greats.
Joshua’s career spans twelve years. It began with the 2012 Olympic gold medal, fittingly at London 2012. It may seem risky, but fans and the boxing world see it as a stepping stone to the fight everyone wants to see: A potential showdown between Joshua and former champion Tyson Fury (34-1-1, 24 KOs), 36, who faces Ukrainian Oleksandr Usyk (22-0, 14 KOs) in a rematch on 21 December.
However, it is all up in the air because if Dubois wins on Saturday, the British legend could be derailed once again. Fury would also have to beat Usyk in his next fight for the big fight to happen. Either way, there are plenty of possibilities. Can you see Joshua and Usyk meeting for a third time?
Boxing
Undisputed World Boxing Champion, Oleksandr Usyk detained and released in Poland
Undisputed heavyweight world champion Oleksandr Usyk has been released after detention by law-enforcement officers at Poland’s Krakow airport, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Wednesday.
“I was outraged by this attitude towards our citizen and champion,” Zelenskiy said on the Telegram messaging app.
“Our champion was released and no one is detaining him anymore.”
It was not immediately clear why the 37-year-old Usyk was detained. The WBC, WBO and WBA champion, who also won gold at the 2012 London Olympics, has been a national hero aiding Kyiv’s war efforts.
Poland’s foreign and interior ministries did not immediately reply to Reuters’ requests for comments.
“Friends, everything is fine,” Usyk said in an Instagram post. “There was a misunderstanding that was quickly resolved. Thank you to everyone who was concerned.”
He added, “Respect to the Polish law enforcement officers who perform their duties regardless of height, weight, arm span, and titles.”
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said on X that his ministry will contact the Polish foreign ministry, as it considered the detention “disproportionate and unacceptable in relation to our champion.”
Polish TVP Info, a television news channel run by state broadcaster TVP, published a social media video on its website showing Polish law-enforcement officers walking the handcuffed Usyk through what appeared to be an airport.
Reuters was not able to independently verify the video.
Usyk beat Tyson Fury in May to become undisputed heavyweight boxing world champion in a thrilling contest at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh.
The 37-year-old Ukrainian is the first boxer to hold all four major heavyweight belts at the same time and the first undisputed champ since the end of Lennox Lewis’ reign in April 2000.
Usyk’s charity fund, Usyk Foundation, aids Kyiv’s forces in the war that Russia launched with a full-scale invasion against Ukraine in 2022. It buys, among others, ambulances and delivers humanitarian aid to the front line.
Usyk’s wife, Yekaterina Usyk, who posted a blurred photo of her husband surrounded by uniformed officers, said in an Instagram post in English that she was thankful her husband was free after a misunderstanding.
-Reuters
Boxing
Tyson says Paul will ‘run like a thief’ in the ring
Mike Tyson said he was fit and ready for his Nov. 15 fight against Jake Paul as the two boxers had a joint news conference in New York City on Sunday.
The match was originally scheduled for July 20 but was postponed after former heavyweight champion Tyson, 58, had an ulcer flare-up that forced some resting time.
“Iron Mike”, who has a 50-6 record with 44 knockouts, was one of the most feared heavyweights in history but has not fought a professional fight since 2005.
When asked why he returned to the ring so long after retirement, Tyson’s response was clear: “Because I can. Who else can do it but me? We have a YouTuber fighting the greatest fighter ever to live.”
“He may have been in the ring with people who have the same intentions, but the actuality, no.
“As soon as I catch this guy it’s going to be totally over, he is going to run. He is gonna run like a thief.”
Paul, who was booed and heckled by the crowd, claimed he would put Tyson to sleep.
“I am here to make 40 million dollars and knock out a legend,” Paul said.
“I love Mike and I respect him but we are not friends anymore until Nov. 15,” he said.
When asked if he was afraid of being in the ring with Paul, Tyson replied sarcastically: “I am terrified.”
YouTuber-turned-boxer Paul, 27, is 31 years his junior and has a 10-1 boxing record.
The fight will be streamed live globally on Netflix and will take place at the 80,000-seat AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, home of the Dallas Cowboys.
-Reuters
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