On Sunday, British-Nigerian boxer Anthony Joshua was defeated by Ukrainian boxer Aleksander Usyk through split decision for the heavyweight title.
Following a close decision, Usyk kept his IBF, IBO, WBA, and WBO belts.
In their first fight last year at Tottenham Hotspur stadium, Joshua pushed Usyk to the limit and turned in a more remarkable performance overall, but ultimately was unable to defeat his Ukrainian opponent.
The first judge ruled in Joshua’s favor with a score of 115 to 113, the second in Usyk’s favor with a score of 115 to 113, and the third with a score of 116 to 112.
Usyk, who is now 35 years old, dethroned the defending champion in London a year ago. If the Ukrainian wins, he might face Tyson Fury of Britain in a unification match for the title.
Following the bout, Joshua told the crowd that he had always known he had an elite potential on his roster.
To put it another way: “If you knew my backstory, you’d get the fervor. I didn’t start training to be a professional boxer at the age of five and was never considered a top prospect. When I realized I was going to prison, I posted bail and immediately began intensively preparing for a battle.
I’m going to steal this Usyk It’s because of how much we care about this, and I’m sad about it. Maybe I could have done better tonight, but losing to this guy is a testament to how hard I trained, so please join me in applauding him as the new world heavyweight champion.
He continued, “I’m not a 12-round fighter, look at me, I’m a new generation of heavyweights, Mike Tyson, Sonny Liston, Jack Dempsey, ‘you don’t throw combinations like Rocky Marciano,'” adding that he weighed 18 stone, was very large, and found boxing to be a difficult endeavor. We’re going to cheer for this guy three times since he’s so talented.