Boxing

JOE JOYCE remains haunted by the drastic end to his winning streak but already has his recovered eye on a comeback party.The 38-year-old Putney Juggernaut was six years and 15 fights into his undefeated professional run when he encountered Zhilei Zhang in April and was stopped after six rounds by a gruesome eye injury.
It took Joe Joyce a couple of weeks to get over the defeat to Zhilei ZhangCredit: Getty
The usual post-fight changing-room shindig was swapped out for a long night in the hospital where a cracked cheekbone was confirmed.
And the deep-thinking fine art graduate admits the dark moments are never far away and Saturday night’s rematch is needed for a fresh canvas.
“It took me a couple of weeks to get over it,” he said. “Not constantly but every now-and-then I have thoughts about it. 
“It’s a very different environment when you lose a fight, compared to when you win one.
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“It’s annoying, every once in a while you’re reminded that you lost a fight and I realise now how much I prefer the feeling of winning, especially the reactions of friends and fans after the fight.
“I had to take my mind off things and get out in nature, on my one-wheel skateboard, I went to see family and friends. 
“I reviewed the footage and saw where I went wrong. I spoke to a lot of people who gave me good advice. There’s plenty to improve and that’s what I have done.”
Baffling, after 18 minutes of suffering stiff right jabs, shuddering long left backhands and whipped right hooks, Joyce was still about to make jokes in his post-fight interview.
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A swollen purple eye and broken septum had not snapped his spirit but it smashed the idea that Joyce is too tough to be beaten.
And ‘Big Bang’ Zhang has already promised to focus all of his attention and power on that vulnerable right peeper.
But star student Joyce insists he is ready to make amends, he said: “I wasn’t massively hurt, I did my usual cool down and then started to feel all the bumps and bruises but I wasn’t hurt apart from the eye swelling which went down within a week.
“I had a minor fracture in my septum but other than that I was in good shape.
Joyce will fight Zhang on SaturdayCredit: Reuters
“Even in the fight I wanted to continue, I could see the fingers that the doctor held up as a test but he stopped it and I live to fight another day. 
“I could have carried on but then it might have got stopped later, with more damage to the eye, so it’s better to regroup and go again.”
Joyce accidentally lost a stone for the bout, he looked ripped and ready on the Friday scales but was sluggish in the Copper Box ring.
A new ingredient in a sports supplement was to blame but the powerhouse has promised to return to his hulking best for the Wembley rerun.
“I was too light and Zhang was heavier and stronger on the night,” he said.
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“I have made minor adjustments, made sure I am eating right and enough.
“I started that last camp on my usual fight weight so it was hard to keep it on in the training camp. That won’t happen again.” More

TYSON FURY’S team have given fresh hope for an undisputed title fight against Oleksandr Usyk despite “PLAGUED” talks in the past. The pair of unbeaten champions have failed in the past to commence the first ever four-belt heavyweight unification.
Tyson Fury’s team have given fresh hope for a fight against Oleksandr UsykCredit: Getty
Usyk and Fury have failed to agree fight terms in the pastCredit: Richard Pelham / The Sun
It led Usyk, 36, into a mandatory title defence against Daniel Dubois, 25, which he won in nine rounds in August.
Meanwhile Fury, 35, turned his attention to ex-UFC star Francis Ngannou, 37, and their October 28 crossover clash in Saudi Arabia.
But Todd DuBoef of Top Rank who promote Fury is still holding out hope for the historic undisputed title decider.
DuBoef told Sky Sports: “I think we were plagued by timing in this last go-around.
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“Timing from both guys just didn’t match up and we were trying to squeeze this fight in, in the spring, before the Dubois-Usyk mandatory had to happen.
“There were a bunch of circumstances, so the good news is Usyk came out of the fight with Dubois.
“Some people thought he didn’t look as good as they thought he would, but it was a really good, competitive fight.
“Tyson is going to stay razor-sharp and hopefully is going to be fighting the baddest man on the planet, and they’re going to be going at it.
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“I think, soon after that, it would be appropriate, and the stars should align for timing purposes, that the unification happens very soon.”
Fans are now fearing the super-fight will NEVER be agreed but DuBoef warned not to rule it out from experience.
He even likened it to when Top Rank boss Bob Arum and rival promoter Don King agreed a deal between Oscar De La Hoya and Felix Trinidad in 1999.
DuBoef said: “There was always an appetite.
“There’s always an appetite to present something when it’s always going against public opinion where people say, ‘You can’t make the big fights’.
“I remember when they said ‘Bob and Don will never make De La Hoya-Trinidad’, and we sat in a deli with Don and the three of us made the fight.
“Sometimes, a lot of the narrative is created online and on social platforms today, and that’s unfortunate and it creates headwinds for reality.
“People have knee-jerk responses to what they hear out there and it kind of drives the negotiation, so if we could keep everybody off the social platforms, I think the alignment of where you could get a big fight to unify all the titles, particularly in the heavyweight division, is very appealing for everyone.”
Fury facing off with UsykCredit: Reuters More

TYSON FURY warned that “everyone’s f***ed” now he has new career goals after COMPLETING boxing. The legendary Gypsy King has won every belt there is to in the sport, holding the WBC, WBA, IBF and WBO titles over to separate reigns.
Tyson Fury wants to star in a Hollywood movieCredit: Getty
And Fury’s popularity has helped him crack the mainstream with a best-selling book and No1 Netflix series.
Now the heavyweight champion wants to take his talents to the big screen as well as become sport’s highest-paid star.
Fury told Queensbury Promotions: “I’ve got new goals, so everyone’s f***ed.
“I want to top the Forbes list as the highest paid athlete ever for the year and I want to make a Hollywood movie.”
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Fury, 35, returns on October 28 in Saudi Arabia against ex-UFC champ Francis Ngannou, 37, in what will be a massive crossover clash.
It came after talks for the first ever four-belt heavyweight unification with Oleksandr Usyk, 36, broke down.
Fury is yet to achieve undisputed title glory but it appears to matter little as he is convinced there is nothing left for him to strive for in the ring.
He said: “I’ve completed the ring game, it’s done, it’s f***ed.
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“I’ve done everything there is to do, I’ve won every belt there is to win and I’ve been undefeated for fifteen years, a two-time undefeated champion.”
Fury further distanced himself from Usyk by calling out UFC legend and heavyweight titlist Jon Jones, 36.
He said: “Hopefully I get through Ngannou and then I either fight Ngannou in a cage or I fight Jon Jones in a boxing match.
“I’d go in a cage with Ngannou for sure, I’d let him kick me, I’d let him do what he wants to me, a full MMA fight.
“I’d knock him out and probably break his arm on the way too with an arm-bar, I’ll kick his leg and break it in two.”
Fury and Francis Ngannou face off ahead of their crossover clashCredit: Getty More