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Dominic Lipinski / Press Association via AP
Top heavyweight Joe Joyce will return to the ring against Zhilei Zhang on Saturday in London, Joyce’s hometown.
JOE JOYCE (15-0, 14 KOS)
WITH. BENEFITS TRUONG (24-1-1, 19 KOS)
- Day: Saturday, April 15
- Time: 2 p.m. ET / 11 a.m. PT (main event follows)
- Where: Copper Box Arena, London
- television/stream: ESPN+ (BT Sport in UK)
- Assignment: Heavyweight (unlimited)
- threatened: No main title
- Pound-for-pound ratings: Do not have
- the odds: Joyce 7½-1 favorite (multi-store average)
- Also on the card: Mikaela Mayer vs. Christina Linardatou, lightweight; Denzel Bentley versus Kieran Smith, midsize; Sam Noakes vs. Karthik Sathish Kumar, lightweight
- Guess: Joyce KO 7
- Background: Joe Joyce is expected to take another step towards his first heavyweight title on Saturday. Heavyweight, powerful boxer is about to have the most important victory of his career, 11lame pants-round take down former owner Joseph Parker in September. That win leaves no doubt he’s one of the top big boys in the world. He stopped his last five opponents, including his co-worker Rival Daniel Dubois in another breakthrough in November 2020. Joyce is the WBO’s “interim” title holder, meaning he’s the first to face off against champion Oleksandr Usyk. The 37-year-old Londoner, the 2016 Olympic silver medalist, believes he is ready to take on any heavyweight in the world. Zhang also had a notable amateur career, winning a silver medal at the 2008 Olympics and participating in the 2012 Olympics. Southpaw from China has won consecutively but his professional career has never been. take-off, which makes the chance to face Joyce particularly important to him. He drew with Jerry Forrest in February 2021, which seemed to expose his limitations. However, he came back to beat fellow cruisers Craig Lewis and Scott Alexander, then made a strong statement by giving undefeated opponent Filip Hrgovic everything he could handle management in a close defeat last August.
