Oleksandr Usyk has again defeated Anthony Joshua to retain the title of unified heavyweight champion.
Joshua failed recapture the title in a bout that was decided by split decision in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Usyk won the rematch on a split decision, taking 116-112 and 115-113 respectively on the cards of Ukraine’s Viktor Fesechko and Britain’s Steve Gray. While Glenn Feldman of the USA scored 115-113 for Joshua.
Joshua has now suffered back-to-back defeats to Usyk, with the Ukrainian retaining the WBA (Super), WBO and IBF titles he won in London September 2021.
At the end of the fight, a furious Joshua picked up two championship belts and threw them out of the ring and strode towards the dressing room, before turning round and getting back into the ring.
He took the microphone in the ring to explain his post-fight frustrations and congratulate the Ukrainian.
“If you knew my story you would understand the passion. I ain’t no amateur boxer from five-years-old that was an elite prospect from youth. I was going to jail, I got bail and I started training my arse off, I wanted to be able to fight.
“This guy to beat me tonight, maybe I could have done better, but it shows the level of hard work I put in so please give him a round of applause as our heavyweight champion of the world,” Joshua said.
AJ loses for the third time in his professional career, while Oleksandr Usyk remains undefeated.
After the victory, Usyk said, “I devote this victory to my family, my country, my team, to all the military defending this country, thank you so much.
“I’m sure that Tyson Fury is not retired yet. I’m convinced he wants to fight me. I want to fight him. If I’m not fighting Fury, I’m not fighting at all.
“Only God knows whether I will fight him or not but all these gentlemen here around me, my team, they are going to help me.”
