Ukrainian Oleksandr Usyk has retained the heavyweight title after beaten Anthony Joshua in a rematch bout in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Saturday, August 20 2022.
Usyk won on a split points decision after the pair went the full 12 rounds – 113 to 115, 115 to 113 and 116 to 112.
The fight follows their bout last year in London, where Usyk won the WBA, IBF, WBO and IBO heavyweight belts from the British boxer.
Until around March, Usyk was fighting on the frontline in Kyiv, but left the war-torn country to focus on his rematch with Joshua.
After the judges’ decision was declared, Joshua threw two of the title belts over the side of the ropes before storming out of the ring.
However, he returned to the ring and grabbed the mic, telling the King Abdullah Sports City: “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 a*** off, I wanted to be able to fight.
“This guy 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.”
