Oleksandr Usyk vs Anthony Joshua 2

Oleksandr Usyk retained the WBA, IBF, WBO and IBO heavyweight championships by defeating Anthony Joshua on a split decision at King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on August 20, 2022. The vacant Ring championship was also at stake. Judges Viktor Fesechko and Steve Gray favoured Usyk by scores of 116–112 and 115–113 respectively, while Glenn Feldman returned a dissenting card of 115–113 for Joshua. The verdict extended Usyk’s unbeaten record to 20 contests and left Joshua with a third defeat in 27 professional appearances.

The match took place before about 10,000 spectators, including former champions Roberto Duran and Naseem Hamed. Usyk weighed 221½ pounds, almost the same as for the first contest, while Joshua was 244½, four pounds heavier than when he lost the championship to the Ukrainian at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium 11 months earlier. Joshua had replaced trainer Robert McCracken with Robert Garcia and Angel Fernandez and entered the return with a more aggressive plan. Instead of trying to outbox the quicker southpaw at long range, he intended to slow Usyk by attacking the body and using his superior size up close. Luis Pabon was the referee.

Usyk began with his customary movement, circling away from Joshua’s right hand and using the southpaw jab to interrupt the challenger’s advances. The opening round was cautious, but Usyk found the cleaner punches late, snapping Joshua’s head back with the right jab and following with a straight left. Joshua showed greater purpose in the second. He established a firmer position in the centre of the ring and directed hooks and right hands towards the champion’s body, including a right uppercut to the solar plexus. Usyk continued to move but was prevented from settling into the easy rhythm he had found during their first meeting.

Joshua maintained his improvement in the third, landing a straight right and attempting to hold Usyk in place after closing the distance. He was still economical with his punches, aware that a reckless pursuit would leave him open to counters, but his body attack gave the champion more to consider. Usyk answered with quick combinations before moving out at an angle. In the fourth, the Ukrainian increased his activity and began changing direction more rapidly. Two firm left hands forced Joshua backwards, and Usyk repeatedly struck before the larger man could set himself to reply.

The fifth and sixth were closely fought. Joshua continued to concentrate on the midsection and succeeded in landing heavier single blows, but Usyk produced the greater number of clean punches. The champion’s footwork made it difficult for Joshua to follow one success with another. When Joshua stepped forward, Usyk either moved outside the lead foot or struck with the jab and left hand before slipping away. Joshua had one of his better spells in the sixth, driving punches into the body and landing a right to the head, but he remained unable to hold Usyk against the ropes for more than a few seconds.

Usyk resumed command in the seventh through movement and punch volume. He worked around Joshua’s guard with the right jab, straight left and short hooks, leaving the challenger turning before he could answer. Joshua made progress again in the eighth, where a forceful body attack caused Usyk visible discomfort. The challenger used his shoulders and forearms at close range and delivered a right uppercut through the middle. Usyk remained composed but was being made to work harder than in the first fight. The official judges differed substantially through these rounds: after six, Feldman had Joshua ahead by five rounds to one, while the other two cards showed a much closer contest.

Joshua produced his finest work in the ninth. He trapped Usyk near the ropes and attacked with sustained combinations to the head and body. Rights to the ribs and uppercuts through the guard forced the champion to retreat under pressure, and for the first time Usyk’s movement appeared hurried rather than controlled. Joshua threw 67 punches and landed 28, twice his previous best for any round in the contest. Usyk’s legs remained beneath him, but he had been driven backwards and made to absorb the most punishing attack of the two fights. All three judges awarded the round to Joshua. After nine, the official totals were 87–84, 86–85 and 85–86 in the challenger’s favour.

The expected development was for Joshua to build upon that success against a champion who had just endured his most difficult round. Usyk instead returned for the tenth with renewed speed and aggression. He met Joshua with rapid combinations from several angles, striking with the straight left, right hook and short punches as the challenger attempted to reset. Joshua landed a counter right which briefly checked the advance, but Usyk immediately resumed his attack. He landed 39 of 95 punches during the round, the highest number recorded against Joshua in any single round of his professional career.

Joshua’s stance became more upright in the eleventh, and his legs appeared heavy. Usyk continued to circle, drawing the challenger forward and meeting him with compact combinations. Joshua tried to drive the champion backwards with single right hands but lacked the energy to sustain another attack like that of the ninth. Usyk landed 23 punches in the round and controlled both the distance and tempo. His recovery after the ninth had decided the direction of the contest.

Joshua entered the twelfth needing a strong finish and possibly a knockdown. He landed a left hook and right hand during an early exchange and attempted to impose himself physically when they came together. Usyk continued punching rather than protecting a presumed lead. He countered Joshua’s advances, landed clean two-punch combinations and finished the contest as the fresher man. Joshua managed moments of success with the right, but Usyk’s movement and output carried the round on two official cards. Over the final three rounds, the champion outlanded Joshua by 79 punches to 29.

The statistics supported Usyk’s victory. He landed 170 of 712 punches, compared with 124 of 492 for Joshua. Usyk connected with 131 power punches to Joshua’s 101, while Joshua’s improved body attack produced 37 scoring blows, more than twice his total in their first meeting. The challenger had made significant tactical improvements and had subjected Usyk to serious pressure in the ninth, but the champion’s superior stamina, balance and ability to adjust during the contest proved decisive.

Fesechko’s 116–112 and Gray’s 115–113 cards produced the correct winner. Feldman’s 115–113 score for Joshua was difficult to reconcile with Usyk’s clear superiority over the closing three rounds, although Feldman had given Joshua six of the first nine and also awarded him the twelfth. After the decision, an emotional Joshua briefly removed two of Usyk’s belts from the ring before returning to take the microphone and address the crowd. The disorder following the announcement did not affect the sporting conclusion. Joshua had performed considerably better than in London, but Usyk had answered his strongest challenge and remained the champion.

Anthony Joshua was much better in the rematch, but Oleksandr Usyk still beat him clearly. Joshua attacked the body, used his size and produced an excellent ninth round, the closest he came to breaking the Ukrainian in either fight.

What happened next showed the difference between a very good heavyweight and a master boxer. Usyk returned for the tenth, increased the tempo and landed 39 punches, the most anyone had landed on Joshua in a single round. That is championship mentality: take your opponent’s best effort, recover within a minute and answer immediately.

Usyk’s feet, angles and stamina controlled the closing rounds. Joshua remained dangerous but could not sustain pressure because he was constantly being made to reset. The split decision was nonsense. Glenn Feldman’s 115–113 card for Joshua bore no relation to the fight I watched.

Joshua improved and deserves credit, but Usyk was the better fighter technically, mentally and physically. There was no argument about the winner.