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Nine years after sharing an Olympic stage in London, England, unified Heavyweight boxing champion Anthony Joshua and former undisputed Cruiserweight roost ruler, Oleksandr Usyk, will duke it out inside Tottenham Hotspur Arena for three of the four major titles.
MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE coverage of today’s main event below. The DAZN broadcast (watch it here) kicks off at 1 p.m. ET, with Joshua and Usyk likely making the walk closer to 5 p.m. ET.
In addition to claiming the WBO, IBF and WBA “Super” titles, whoever wins the main event will most likely move on to an undisputed title fight with either Tyson Fury or Deontay Wilder. It’s no exaggeration to call this one of the most important Heavyweight bouts of 2021.
In other championship action, Lawrence Okolie defends his WBO cruiserweight belt against mandatory challenger Dilan Prasovic, while former WBA Super Middleweight Champion Callum Smith tries his hand at Light Heavyweight against Lenin Castillo.
Joshua Vs. Usyk Quick Results:
Anthony Joshua vs. Oleksandr Usyk — Usyk def. Joshua by unanimous decision (117-112, 116-112, 115-113)
Lawrence Okolie vs. Dilan Prasovic — Okolie def. Prasovic by KO at 1:57 of Round Three
Callum Smith vs. Lenin Castillo — Smith def. Castillo by KO at 0:55 of Round Two
Maxim Prodan vs. Florian Marku — Marku def. Prodan by split decision (91-99, 97-93, 96-94)
Christopher Ousley vs. Khasan Baysangurov
Campbell Hatton vs. Sonny Martinez — Hatton def. Martinez by referee decision (58-57)
Joshua Vs. Usyk Round-By-Round Updates:
WBO/IBF/WBA “Super” Heavyweight Championship: Anthony Joshua vs. Oleksandr Usyk
Round one: Usyk pops him with an early left and jab. Very active with the feints. Joshua with a straight right. Both feinting with the lead hand, then Joshua follows up with a sweeping right. Halfway through. Usyk to the body. Clean left upstairs, best punch of the fight. 1-2 just misses. Usyk circling, avoids a pair of shots. Body shot connects. Very good movement so far, not letting Joshua sit down on anything. Another clean left cross by the challenger. 10-9 Usyk.
Round two: Both looking for jabs. Usyk to the body once again. Joshua tries to answer in kind, blocks a quick combo. Usyk with the greater volume thus far. Joshua looks for a four-piece in the pocket. Usyk digs a pair of lefts to the body halfway through the round. Joshua lands a right to the body, can’t sneak the left around the guard and gets his own split by a cross. Joshua connects with a lead right, Usyk answers to the body. Long left by the Ukrainian. 10-9, 20-18 Usyk.
Round three: Usyk opens with another body shot. He’s answering back every time Joshua gets a clean shot in. 1-2-3 from Usyk. Body shot again, answered in kind by Joshua. Halfway through. They trade crosses. There’s a good right through the guard by the champion. Clean left cross by Usyk, then to the body. Right hook right after, then an overhand left that visibly rattles Joshua. Joshua manages to tie up and get his wits back before the bell. 10-9, 30-27 Usyk.
Round four: Joshua slips right off the bat. Usyk winning the jab battle. Joshua lands a right downstairs. Usyk sneaks in a couple hooks while pivoting. Clean jab. Halfway through. Joshua connects with a long right cross. 3-2 from Usyk, clinch. 1-1-2 downstairs, then a 1-2 to the head. Joshua having all sorts of trouble getting comfortable. Trading jabs. Body jab by the champion. 10-9, 40-36 Usyk.
Round five: Trading in the center to start. Usyk to the body. Joshua just misses a combo in the pocket. Usyk to the body, then the head with straight lefts. Joshua digs a right downstairs halfway through the round. Joshua with a nice little series to the body. Usyk fires a combination behind the straight left, answered with a straight right soon after. Clean jabs by Usyk. Big exchange, Joshua right cross. Better round for the champ. 10-9 Joshua, 49-46 Usyk.
Round six: Usyk to the body, Joshua pops him upstairs. Trading prodding shots at range, nobody seizing the round yet at the halfway point. Slick four-piece from Usyk, slips the return fire. High-low 1-2. Joshua with some glancing head shots. Clean straight right on the counter. Usyk lands a right hook and eats a bigger one in return. 10-9 Joshua, 58-56 Usyk.
Round seven: Usyk a little more active to start the round, Joshua meeting him in the center. Usyk to the body. Stinging jab backs Joshua up. Overhand left. Straight left. Joshua digs a hook downstairs. Halfway through. Joshua body shot, Usyk overhand left. Sneaky combination by the challenger. Joshua looking to connect with arm punches, gets in a long right. Usyk sends him stumbling back with a heavy left hand. Good sequence of punches. Very good volleys from the challenger. Stiff jab. Great bounce-back round. 10-9, 68-65 Usyk.
Round eight: Both men prodding in the center. Usyk digs a left downstairs. Looping right hand by Joshua and a straighter one soon after. Trading jabs halfway through the round. Joshua goes low-high with right hands. Usyk lands a straight left after taking another body shot, tries a combination. Cleaner one soon after. Joshua pops him with another pair of right hands. Usyk straight left and combo. Exchanging in the center. Joshua continuing to target the body. 10-9 Joshua, 77-75 Usyk.
Round nine: Back to trading volleys, neither man sitting down on them. Usyk steps in with a combination into the clinch. Long-range combo halfway through. Clean jabs, cross counter. Straight left lands. Combination, clinch. Both sling their power hands. Clean straight left by Usyk, his best shot in a while. Joshua comes back with a body blow that prompts a clinch. 10-9, 87-84 Usyk.
Round ten: Early combo from Usyk into the clinch. Joshua’s been getting away with holding and hitting. Usyk comes back with some solid punches. Nice early volume from the challenger. 1-1-2, counter jab. Joshua pops him with a quick straight right. Body shot. Halfway through. Another right downstairs. Clinch. Usyk goes low-high and they trade in the center. Straight left again by Usyk. Overhand left in the waning seconds. 10-9, 97-93 Usyk.
Round eleven: Usyk aggressive early, working behind the jab. Clean uppercut and straight left. They trade right hands in center ring. Joshua straight right. Double right hand. Halfway through. Usyk’s volume isn’t as prolific this round. Joshua not landing huge but landing volume. There’s a quality five-piece by Usyk, which prompts a clinch. Nice combo upstairs. Joshua to the body. Trading lead hands. Usyk goes low-high with combinations. He stole the round in the last minute. 10-9, 107-102 Usyk.
Round twelve: Usyk comes out firing, landing left hands. Good overhand left. Very nice counter right by Joshua, then another soon after. Usyk cracks him with a three-piece combo in response. Joshua finds the mark with a straight right. Usyk straight left, bounces a four-piece off the guard and catches Joshua pivoting. Lenthy combination stings Joshua. Halfway through the round. Long left by Usyk. hjoshua finds the mark with a pair of right hands. Usyk straight left soon after, heavy jab. Great exchanges. Usyk with a shifting left hand. Body shot. Joshua firign off the back foot and gets cracked. Usyk smells blood and hes pummeling Joshua in the last 20 seconds. The bell appears to ring early, but it’s 10-9, 117-111 Usyk. You could give Joshua maybe two rounds but it’s indisputable that Usyk won this fight with a brilliant performance.
Final result: Usyk def. Joshua by unanimous decision
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