Boxing
Tyson Fury’s former opponents among career rebuilding options for Anthony Joshua
Following back-to-back defeats to Oleksandr Usyk, Anthony Joshua has an uphill battle to fulfil his desire to become a three-time world champion.
The third defeat of his career means that he will have to look towards the contenders rather than the top fighters for his next bout.
However, despite his defeat, Joshua looked closer to his best against pound-for-pound king Usyk in Jeddah on August 20 and will have a host of lucrative options available to him.
According to Manchester Evening News, Joshua remains the third ranked heavyweight with both The Ring Magazine and BoxRec and a fight against former WBC champion Deontay Wilder has been touted.
Eddie Hearn has also suggested that Dillian Whyte could be the star’s next opponent, with the former mandatory challenger for Tyson Fury’s WBC crown having previously lost to Joshua in 2015.
However, speaking to DAZN, with whom Joshua has signed a multi-year deal, Hearn suggested that a Wilder fight would be equal to Fury vs Usyk as the biggest fight in the division
The Matchroom promoter spoke to DAZN Boxing Show, saying: “It may be the biggest fight in the division, still. Fury [against] Usyk is a huge fight, obviously, but in terms of excitement, ‘AJ’ [vs] Wilder is right up there, as is ‘AJ’ against Dillian Whyte.
“The next step, in my opinion, for ‘AJ’ will be to box in December or January or whenever that’s going to be and to come back with a top 15 guy and put in a dominating performance.”
Joshua enjoyed a more positive performance, earning a split decision against the Ukrainian former cruiserweight despite defeat and Hearn explained the 32-year-old’s need to get straight back into the ring sooner rather than later as he seeks to regain his world champion status after a disappointing defeat to Usyk last September.
-MEN
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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