Anthony Joshua and Oleksandr Usyk came face to face in Jeddah on Wednesday ahead of their world heavyweight title rematch. The Briton lost at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium last September and AJ will hope to repeat his trick after achieving redemption against Andy Ruiz in a rematch in Saudi Arabia. There is the possibility of the winner becoming undisputed champion in the next fight, although Tyson Fury’s most recent retirement clouds the future of the division.
The pair exchanged words earlier, with both men looking calm and relaxed, with just three days remaining, the hard work is done. Both could agree on the value of sparring partners though, with Usyk concurring with his rival, adding “they are the people who make us better”. As Joshua bids to take on the mesmerising and outrageously skilful Usyk once more, AJ underlined his hunger to “compete” and the challenge to meet his own expectations in the ring. The former champion downplayed the significance of the belts, with the WBA, WBO and IBF belts on the line, plus The Ring Magazine belt, which was relinquished by Fury after his announcement he would not fight again.
Joshua may be the underdog, but there is pressure coming from the media and former fighters Johnny Nelson and Carl Froch, who believe this could be his last fight. Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn, who is eyeing up round six as pivotal to the outcome of the fight, maintains the 32-year-old would need to be patient for another shot at the title if he loses again, but that it is far from the end of the road: “He loves what he does, AJ loves to fight. He loves boxing. It will be difficult to get a shot at the world heavyweight title. But why would you even consider retiring from the sport if you lose to the pound-for-pound number one? Unless you just didn’t want to do it anymore.” Recap everything that was said at the press conference from the fighters and their teams below:
