By: Sean Crose
Three of the world’s four heavyweight titles were at stake on Saturday when Oleksandr Usyk slid inside the ring in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia to face Anthony Joshua, with whom he won the titles. that belt from almost a year earlier. Billed as “Rage on the Red Sea,” the scheduled 12th round battle is undoubtedly one of the most relevant matches of 2022, perhaps even the most relevant. Joshua 24-2 is looking to become a three-time world heavyweight champion while Usyk 19-0 is representing his homeland of war-torn Ukraine.
The opening round saw a more mobile Joshua than the world saw in his first bout against Usyk, although defending champion Usyk had a moment to land. The second story is an interesting one. Both men could have found home to take their intended hits – to Joshua’s head and Usyk’s body respectively – but Joshua’s movements probably made him a harder target. compared to the first game. Things started to heat up in season three, with each man effectively landing. Round 4 was interesting. Usyk is picking up speed, using impressive footwork and landing clean while Joshua lands hard – especially into Usyk’s body.
By season five, it looks like the advantage may be going to Usyk, as Joshua doesn’t move as much as before. Perhaps even more remarkable is that Joshua’s shots didn’t seem to have much of an effect on the Ukrainian. With that said, Joshua had a much more active and energetic Friday. Joshua’s movement returned in the seventh round, a round where he could have taken the referee’s hand. The eighth session was close and enjoyable, with each man taking good hits. Joshua had his man on the rope while Usyk came back and clearly landed on Joshua’s head at the end of the round.
Joshua had a huge ninth hit, clearly hurting Usyk. He seemed about to take down his man, though Usyk stood firm. However, it could be a turning point as it shows Joshua has the power to rip through defensive players. However, the tenth round was Usyk’s big round, as he knocked Joshua down. Joshua has landed himself hard on a few occasions, but it is Usyk who is regularly rocking his men throughout the chapter. Joshua landed some powerful body shots in the eleventh round, but Usyk controlled the round with clean and cracked punches, landing on a regular basis. Each boxer landed thunderous shots in the twelfth and final round.
Usyk walked out of the ring with a decisive victory (115-113, 116-112 & 113-115) and his belt was still in his possession.
