Joshua, Usyk Rematch On Hold As Ukrainian Fights Russia

Cat:

Related stories

Seplat Energy Successfully Holds 12th AGM Meeting

By Abiola Olawale Seplat Energy Plc, Nigeria’s leading independent energy...

Tinubu Hosts Alaafin of Oyo at Aso Rock

By Abiola Olawale President Bola Ahmed Tinubu hosted His Imperial...

FG Didn’t Relocate Ministerial Briefings to London, Minister Dismisses Reports

By Kolawole Ojebisi The Federal Government has debunked reports making...

The rematch between heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk and former champion and challenger Anthony Joshua, has been put on hold due to Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine.

Usyk, a Ukrainian national, has enlisted in a territorial defence brigade and when asked about the rematch said: “I really don’t know when I’m going to be stepping back in the ring. My country and my honour are more important to me than a championship belt.”

As newsmen reported last September, Usyk won a majority decision over Joshua to become the unified heavyweight champion. Joshua’s rematch clause was activated, and the two were scheduled to fight in May or June.

However, with Usyk joining Ukraine’s defence, it is unclear when the two will fight again. Prior to his enlistment, the heavyweight champion had revealed his reluctance to becoming part of the war saying: “I don’t want to shoot. I don’t want to kill anybody, but if they will be killing me, I will have no choice.”

Matchroom Boxing’s Eddie Hearn, who is promoting the Joshua rematch, said of the circumstances: “It’s a very unique, personal, emotional situation and I don’t think we can really fathom what’s going on there and what’s going through the minds of people involved there.

“So for us, of course, utmost respect for Oleksandr Usyk. We don’t want the obligation of a rematch to go away. So, we’ll wait as long as Oleksandr Usyk needs during this difficult time for him.”

The 35-year-old Usyk has a lifetime record of 19 victories with 13 knockouts while Joshua, who is 32, has a record of 24 wins and two losses, with 22 knockout victories.

Prior to the Usyk fight in January, Joshua was offered an interim fight to keep him in shape for the rematch. Joshua was to face either Joe Joyce or Daniel Dubois, according to promoter Frank Warren.

Warren put these choices before Joshua to get him mentally and physically ready: “If he wants to fight before hand, fight Joe Joyce or Daniel Dubois. They are very, very good fights.”

Hearn is beginning to consider these options as he indicated that if there is an extended delay, Joshua may fight an interim match immediately, especially after Usyk joined Ukraine’s defence with no end in sight of the invasion.

Joshua’s only fight since December 2020, when he knocked out Kubrat Pulev in the ninth round to retain the WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, and IBO heavyweight championships, was against Usyk.

Oyinlola Awonuga
Oyinlola Awonugahttps://newdiplomatng.com
Oyinlola Awonuga is a trained journalist with skill-set and experience in content curation, content creation, and management across various digital channels . Awonuga is passionate about Entertainment, Style, Fashion and Sports as niche specialties, and she is involved in consistent engagements on various social media platforms, with steady followers online. Her works have also received appreciable recognition from Media Career Development Network, and at her spare time, she monitors developments and reports on Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Nigeria. She loves reading, tracking updates on Entertainment, Style and Sports, and staying abreast of global digital developments.

Subscribe

- Never miss a story with notifications

- Gain full access to our premium content

- Browse free from up to 5 devices at once

[tds_leads input_placeholder="Your email address" btn_horiz_align="content-horiz-center" pp_msg="SSd2ZSUyMHJlYWQlMjBhbmQlMjBhY2NlcHQlMjB0aGUlMjAlM0NhJTIwaHJlZiUzRCUyMiUyMyUyMiUzRVByaXZhY3klMjBQb2xpY3klM0MlMkZhJTNFLg==" pp_checkbox="yes" tdc_css="eyJhbGwiOnsibWFyZ2luLXRvcCI6IjMwIiwibWFyZ2luLWJvdHRvbSI6IjQwIiwiZGlzcGxheSI6IiJ9LCJwb3J0cmFpdCI6eyJtYXJnaW4tdG9wIjoiMTUiLCJtYXJnaW4tYm90dG9tIjoiMjUiLCJkaXNwbGF5IjoiIn0sInBvcnRyYWl0X21heF93aWR0aCI6MTAxOCwicG9ydHJhaXRfbWluX3dpZHRoIjo3NjgsImxhbmRzY2FwZSI6eyJtYXJnaW4tdG9wIjoiMjAiLCJtYXJnaW4tYm90dG9tIjoiMzAiLCJkaXNwbGF5IjoiIn0sImxhbmRzY2FwZV9tYXhfd2lkdGgiOjExNDAsImxhbmRzY2FwZV9taW5fd2lkdGgiOjEwMTksInBob25lIjp7Im1hcmdpbi10b3AiOiIyMCIsImRpc3BsYXkiOiIifSwicGhvbmVfbWF4X3dpZHRoIjo3Njd9" display="column" gap="eyJhbGwiOiIyMCIsInBvcnRyYWl0IjoiMTAiLCJsYW5kc2NhcGUiOiIxNSJ9" f_msg_font_family="downtown-sans-serif-font_global" f_input_font_family="downtown-sans-serif-font_global" f_btn_font_family="downtown-sans-serif-font_global" f_pp_font_family="downtown-serif-font_global" f_pp_font_size="eyJhbGwiOiIxNSIsInBvcnRyYWl0IjoiMTEifQ==" f_btn_font_weight="700" f_btn_font_size="eyJhbGwiOiIxMyIsInBvcnRyYWl0IjoiMTEifQ==" f_btn_font_transform="uppercase" btn_text="Unlock All" btn_bg="#000000" btn_padd="eyJhbGwiOiIxOCIsImxhbmRzY2FwZSI6IjE0IiwicG9ydHJhaXQiOiIxNCJ9" input_padd="eyJhbGwiOiIxNSIsImxhbmRzY2FwZSI6IjEyIiwicG9ydHJhaXQiOiIxMCJ9" pp_check_color_a="#000000" f_pp_font_weight="600" pp_check_square="#000000" msg_composer="" pp_check_color="rgba(0,0,0,0.56)" msg_succ_radius="0" msg_err_radius="0" input_border="1" f_unsub_font_family="downtown-sans-serif-font_global" f_msg_font_size="eyJhbGwiOiIxMyIsInBvcnRyYWl0IjoiMTIifQ==" f_input_font_size="eyJhbGwiOiIxNCIsInBvcnRyYWl0IjoiMTIifQ==" f_input_font_weight="500" f_msg_font_weight="500" f_unsub_font_weight="500"]

Latest stories

Latest News
Seplat Energy Successfully Holds 12th AGM MeetingTinubu Hosts Alaafin of Oyo at Aso RockLabour Party Crisis: "Abure is a mole, Has Committed unethical things" Nenadi Usman Exposes AbureFani-Kayode Blasts Bandits feeding Dogs with twins:"Can There Be A More Calous Crime, Bestial Act of Savagery, Barbarity'?FG Didn't Relocate Ministerial Briefings to London, Minister Dismisses ReportsPolice Allay Lagosians' Fear, Say Men In Viral Video Are Dangote Refinery WorkersUtomi Talks Tough, Says He’s Ready to Face DSS in Court Over Shadow Cabinet's AllegationsUmahi Makes Shocking Revelation, Says Tinubu Has Invested N2.2tn in InfrastructureGabon’s Ousted Leader Ali Bongo, Family Regain freedom, Relocate to Angola, Says PresidencyTinubu Jets Out of Abuja For Pope Leo's InaugurationInsecurity: Opayemi Bamidele Chairs 20-member Senate Committee on Security Summit2027: PDP Can Defeat Tinubu, Obi, APC, LP Without Coalition -- Abba MoroFresh Trouble for VeryDarkMan as IGP Re-Arraigns Him Over Alleged Cyberbullying of Iyabo Ojo, Tonto Dikeh, OthersEPL Champions League Qualification Race Intensifies As Chelsea, Manchester City, Newcastle, Others Vie for Top Five SpotsDetails as Police Arrest Chris Brown In UK Over Alleged 2023 Bottle Fight
X whatsapp