Heavyweight boxing

ANTHONY JOSHUA has been honing his shooting skills ahead of his rematch with Ukraine assassin Oleksandr Usyk with laser tag sessions.Watford’s 32-year-old heavyweight hero lost his WBA, IBF and WBO titles to the southpaw sharpshooter in September.
Anthony Joshua enjoyed a game of laser tag with his pals while out in Dubai
Two-time heavyweight world champion AJ finished fifth out of eighth with just 25 kills
And he has been on training tours of America and Dubai looking for a new training regime to help him refocus for the Spring shot at recapturing his belts.
The 2012 Olympic icon trained with Floyd Mayweather last week but enjoyed some fun with friends at the Xstrike entertainment centre on Monday night.
The former champ only finished fifth out of his eight mates, with 25 kills inside the combat simulator.
And he did not enjoy the vibration belt that buzzed around his waist when shot by a rival.
But if it helps him improve his eye and reflexes for the must-win rerun then it will have been well worth boosting his armoury with the session.
AJ has been putting in the hours training at the giant Binous gym in the Al Quoz region of Dubai, with the Xstrike centre just a five minute drive away.
Joshua was not a fan of the vibration belt around his waist as he couldn’t get past the first level
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The 6ft 6in powerhouse also enjoyed a football match between friends over the weekend, with the former winger playing on a local astroturf pitch.
Joshua is mixing business and pleasure on his Middle East jaunt, with major news on his break-up with Team GB Rob McCracken expected soon.
Promoter Eddie Hearn claimed last month that AJ will make a public announcement regarding his team for the Usyk rematch in the New Year.
And it looks unlikely he will remain in the UK where his contribution to British sport has made him too much of a hero to be properly challenged.
The Matchroom boss said: “I feel it might be time to move on from that environment because when you’ve been there since you were 18 and you go into GB and Anthony Joshua is everywhere, he’s a god.

“I just feel it’s time to rough him up a little bit, not in log cabins in the middle of nowhere. But up there it’s ‘Oh my God, it’s AJ!’ because they’re proud of him.
“It’s not just about who’s training him, it’s about where that’s going to take place.
“He’s talking to people and I think he will make a decision early in the new year.” More

A HEAVYWEIGHT boxer PUNCHED the referee after being handed a controversial loss.Iago Kiladze and Viktor Faust were putting on an entertaining fight with five knockdowns in the first two rounds on the Charles Martin vs Victor Ortiz undercard on Saturday night.
Iago Kiladze had his fight on Saturday night waved off in controversial fashion
He responded by swiping out at the referee Samuel Burgos
The referee reacted furiously but is understood to have laughed the incident off later
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Kiladze was knocked down for the third time in Florida but managed to get up and beat the count.
However, referee Samuel Burgos was not satisfied with his slight stagger when Kiladze was walking forwards and suddenly called the contest off – sparking huge outrage.
Fans booed loudly as Faust, 29, celebrated taking his pro record to 9-0 despite just 32 punches combined in the four-and-a-half-minute fight.
And Kiladze’s fury boiled over inside the ring, too.
The 35-year-old then aimed a soft right-hand jab at the referee’s chin as Burgos waved in his face.
A shocked Burgos stood his ground and shouted at the boxer: “What the f*** are you doing? Fight’s over!”
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And a commentator calling the action added: “You cannot do this. That’s going to cost him money, you can’t do that, you can’t get violent with the referee.”
Thankfully Burgos was unhurt and is understood to have been laughing about the incident later on.
But the defeat could be costly for Kiladze.
The Georgian fighter, who lost to Joe Joyce in September 2018, has now won 27 of his 34 boxing bouts.
Opinions were split on social media regarding the flashpoint with the referee.
One Twitter user said: “Never good for a fighter to touch a ref, but I don’t blame Kiladze for being upset.
“Not a great stoppage IMO & the ref did seem to show some favouritism for the undefeated Faust.”
Another wrote: “Kiladze punched the referee! LMAO! This just turned into a WWE style fight!”
And a third added: “I don’t agree with the stoppage at all, but also not a reason for Kiladze to do that to the referee.”
There were five knockdowns inside four-and-a-half minutes from 32 punchesCredit: Rex More

TYRON WOODLEY was so badly dazed in the immediate aftermath of his fight with Jake Paul that he didn’t know he’d been knocked out.The former UFC welterweight champion suffered a brutal sixth-round KO loss to the YouTuber turned boxer in their Tampa tussle last month.
Jake Paul viciously knocked out Tyron Woodley in their rematch in DecemberCredit: SHOWTIME
A huge overhand right from Paul faceplanted the former UFC welterweight championCredit: AFP
And The Chosen One had no idea he’d been KO’d when he came toCredit: Reuters
Woodley faceplanted the canvas after being cracked with a huge overhand right, a moment he couldn’t immediately recall according to his coach Din Thomas.
During an appearance on Sirius XM Radio, Thomas said of the fight: “I think he went through a series of different emotions.
“I remember standing inside the ring as soon as it happened and he was like, ‘No, no, when do I go back out?’
“He didn’t even know, right when it happened, he thought it was in between rounds and I’m sure he was probably wondering why everybody was standing inside the ring.
“He didn’t even know at that moment.”
Thomas, like many others, was left gobsmacked by Paul’s viral stoppage of The Chosen One.
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He continued: “When I got out of the ring, I really just sat there, just in disbelief.
“That is really what the beginning was, disbelief, you couldn’t believe that just happened.
“Then when we got to the back everyone on the team was disappointed like I can’t just believe that happened.
“Even him, he was going back-and-forth.
“The guy that runs High Rollerz, well he was in the back and he brought his daughter who was probably four-years-old and when Tyron saw her he was like, ‘Hey, I’m OK, don’t worry.’
“She really brought the life back into him and from him seeing this little girl you saw his whole demeanour change from being disappointed to this is what it is and I have to accept it.”
Woodley, who has now lost his last six fights, couldn’t help but lament the cost of him briefly dropping his left hand.
He said: “I told you guys I was in shape, I told you guys I was ready to fight, and I told you guys I was in better shape than he was.
“So, I did that tonight and went back and looked at it and thought, ‘Why the f**k did I drop my hands?’
A dejected Tyron Woodley lamented his brief dropping of his left hand after the fightCredit: Reuters
“I was ready, I had both my hands up and I was expecting the overhand.
“I knew he was gonna delay the punch. But even if he delayed it, I was ready for it.
“Even if he didn’t delay I don’t know why I dropped my guard. In this sport, it takes only one mistake, just one mistake, I blocked so many of his shots.”
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MEXICAN superstar Canelo Alvarez has been tipped to become a heavyweight world champion if he decides to pile on the pounds.The 31-year-old has won world titles in four weight classes from light-middleweight to light-heavyweight.
Canelo Alvarez has been backed by stablemate Frank Sanchez to become a heavyweight world champion in the futureCredit: Getty
And the undisputed super-middleweight champion could be set to jump up two divisions to take on WBC cruiserweight champion Ilunga Makabu.
The governing body gave the green light for the dust-up to take place in 2022, with the winner of Makabu and challenger Thabiso Mchunu to face Canelo next.
Canelo has admitted it was his trainer Eddy Reynoso who came up with the plan for him to put on 32lbs and jump up to cruiserweight without even consulting hin.
Meanwhile promoter Eddie Hearn has stated Canelo could move up to heavyweight as he declared the Guadalajara native aims to make history.
And Canelo’s stablemate Frank Sanchez, who outpointed heavyweight Christian Hammer this weekend, shares similar views with Hearn.
He believes that he can become a world champion in the glamour division to compete with the top boxers, though he failed to mention any specific opponents for his training partner.
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Speaking to DAZN, the unbeaten Cuban said: “Look, I’ve sparred with Canelo.
“I can tell you with the utmost confidence that Canelo has heavyweight power.
“He can handle cruiserweight, and in my opinion, he could be a heavyweight champion if he put his mind to it.
“Canelo is an absolute stud. He’s very serious and very respectful both with me and his work ethic.
“The biggest lesson that I learned from him is the fact that it doesn’t matter whether you’re training or you’re inside the ring, that you got to be serious about your craft, that you got to follow it with passion.
Fury could have to face Tyson Fury if he moves up to the glamour divisionCredit: Reuters
“That’s the main thing that I took away from being around Canelo, someone that I appreciate a lot.”
Unified heavyweight champ Oleksandr Usyk, who holds the WBA, WBO and IBF belt, has opened the door to a match-up against Alvarez.
Though boxing legend Roy Jones Jr has warned the slick Ukrainian southpaw against fighting Canelo. More

FORMER IBF heavyweight champion Charles Martin suffered a brutal knockout loss in his clash with Luis Ortiz.Martin – whose reign as IBF champ was ended by Anthony Joshua – locked horns with King Kong in California early this morning.

The St Louis slugger made a great start to the contest, dropping Ortiz in the first and fourth rounds with a couple of sneaky right hands.
But a nasty straight left from Ortiz in the sixth badly dazed Martin, who was swarmed by the Cuban before he slumped into the ropes.
Boxing fans were quick to react to Ortiz’s stunning stoppage victory, with one saying: “I hope Martin is okay. That punch paused him.”
Another said: “He was like, ‘Did I lock my front door?'”
And another said: That punch from Ortiz caused Martin to glitch.”
One remarked: “He doesn’t know where he is.”
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Fans weren’t happy with the referee’s delayed stoppage of the action, with one saying: “That is dreadful, dangerous refereeing.”
Another said: “Ref has had a stinker here.”
The pair almost came to blows again after the fight when Ortiz shoved Martin following a heated protest of the stoppage.
Cooler heads, thankfully, prevailed.
Moments after the near melee, Ortiz said: “I told you this was going to be fireworks.
“He knocked me down twice, and at the end I finished him.
“I do respect him a lot. I was never worried. I just kept working the jab.
Charles Martin was left badly dazed after eating a huge straight leftCredit: FOX Sports: PBC
Ortiz left the former IBF champ in a heap on the ropesCredit: Alamy
King Kong celebrates his impressive stoppage of MartinCredit: Alamy
“Southpaw against southpaw is a difficult fight, but at the end, intelligence won it.”
Ortiz then sent a message to the rest of the stacked heavyweight division.
He said: “I have a message for every heavyweight in line for a world title: you don’t want to fight King Kong.”
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