Heavyweight boxing

BOXING legend Mike Tyson admits he’d happily take a fight with one of the Paul brothers.Social media stars Jake and Logan, 24 and 26 respectively, have taken the boxing world by storm over the last 18 months.
Jake and Logan Paul have taken the boxing world by storm in the last two yearsCredit: INSTAGRAM
And boxing legend Mike Tyson admits he’d fight either Paul brotherCredit: INSTAGRAM
Logan Paul recently shared the ring with boxing legend Floyd MayweatherCredit: GETTY
Jake recently shared the ring with former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley, while older brother Logan boxed Floyd Mayweather in June.
The YouTubers have divided opinion in the boxing world, but Tyson admits he’d jump at the opportunity to face either man.
When asked if he’d fight one of the Pauls, the 55-year-old said on his podcast: “Yeah, hell yeah.”
Guest Freddie Gibbs poured cold water on Tyson potentially facing either Paul brother, insisting they wouldn’t share the ring with him.
A defiant Tyson replied: “They would. That would be a lot of money.”
Tyson reckons Logan would be willing to step in the ring with him if $100million (£74m) were on the table.

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The former undisputed heavyweight champion said: “He might.
“100million bucks, they’ll do anything. They don’t care about getting beat up for $100million.”
Logan hasn’t fought since his clash with Mayweather but plans to set foot inside the ring again.
He said: “Come on, baby, baby. Come on. Yeah, of course, I have to. This is the coolest thing on the planet.
“You think about the Roman Colosseum, when you watch the gladiators fight to the death.
“Look around. My brother filled this arena up in Cleveland, Ohio, his home city. It’s the coolest thing anyone could ever ask for.
“I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again: Fighters, bro, modern-day gladiators. There is no more dangerous athlete.
“When the fighter walks in the room, everyone feels it. He’s got a presence. And it’s cool, I love it.
“I love the sport, I love entertaining. And honestly, I’m f***ing good, bro.”
Mike Tyson returned to the ring last year for an exhibition with Roy Jones Jr
Tyson returned to the ring last November for an exhibition match with fellow great Roy Jones Jr.
And The Baddest Man of the Planet is targeting a rematch with Lennox Lewis after his old foe Evander Holyfield fell at the hands of Vitor Belfort last month.
Tyson told ES News: “Evander f****d up the money. We gotta do it with Lennox [Lewis] now.”

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BOXING legend Mike Tyson reckons Anthony Joshua’s lack of urgency was his undoing against Oleksandr Usyk.Former undisputed cruiserweight king Usyk ended Joshua’s second reign as unified heavyweight champ last weekend with a masterful performance at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Anthony Joshua and Oleksandr Usyk traded blows at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium last weekendCredit: GETTY
Usyk put on a boxing clinic to dethrone Joshua on enemy territoryCredit: GETTY
But boxing legend Mike Tyson reckons he’d get the better of both men in his primeCredit: GETTY
Usyk’s footwork and feints guided him to heavyweight glory, although Tyson believes Joshua’s hesitancy also played a huge part.
He told ES News: “It was the speed more than anything that f***ed up Joshua.
“He started late, he’s still learning. He can still learn, he’s a baby.”
Iron Mike wasn’t blown away by what he saw of the pair, so much he reckons he would’ve battered them in his heyday.
When asked if he would’ve beaten them in his prime, he said: “I’m not talking about any of their fights before this fight.
“But that night I‘d have beat them.”

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The Baddest Man on the Planet posed hypothetical fights with the pair to his legion of followers a few days after the bout.
He tweeted “After watching Joshua vs Usyk fight, maybe they had a bad day that night.
“From that performance, do you really think they could have beat me in my prime?”
Joshua and Usyk, 31 and 34 respectively, are set to renew their rivalry early next year after AJ exercised his rematch clause.
The Watford warrior was taught a boxing lesson and admits he was wrong to try box the fleet-footed Ukrainian.
He started late, he’s still learning. He can still learn, he’s a babyMike Tyson on Anthony Joshua’s defeat to Oleksandr Usyk
He said: “I’ve watched the fight, analysed my preparations and identified my mistakes.
“I’ve learnt my lesson. Don’t worry about me. My spirit is strong!”
Joshua is confident of getting the better of Usyk second time around, saying: “If you look at it from a negative point of view, you’re never going to have that mindset that you can make a difference because you’re down anyway.
“But if you look at it from a positive point of view, and realise, ‘Yeah, I took a loss.
“‘But that’s a lesson, that’s a blessing. I can use it as fuel to get better.

“‘And use it as fuel to right my wrongs. You can only get better from there.
“So I’m not gonna hold myself down from the mistake I made, I’m only gonna uplift myself and say, ‘Actually, you know what? That was a tough fight.
“‘But from that fight, I’m gonna go away, get my notepad out and find ways to improve.”

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Anthony Joshua tells Oleksandr Usyk ‘I know how to beat you’ minutes after loss More

JOE JOYCE will watch Anthony Joshua’s rematch against Oleksandr Usyk with conflicting feelings. The heavyweight will soon be called to fight the winner due to his status as WBO mandatory challenger.
Joe Joyce pictured before boxing Oleksandr Usyk in 2013Credit: Getty
Anthony Joshua pictured after sparring next to Joe Joyce
Joyce is a former sparring partner and team-mate of Joshua’s during his time spent on the GB Olympic squad.
But in 2013, he boxed and lost to Usyk over five rounds in the World Boxing Series tournament – a hybrid of amateur and professional boxing.
And having also sparred with WBC champion Tyson Fury, out of the three Joyce fancies his chances most against Ukraine’s Usyk.
But it would mean needing the newly crowned unified king to do the double over AJ before Joyce could get his anticipated rematch.
Asked who his style matches up best with, he told SunSport: “I say maybe Usyk.
“Because AJ is more likely to knock me out and with Fury you’re in danger of being outboxed.

“He’s at the top, with Joshua, Usyk, they’re all at the top level but they all pose a different skillset and attributes which put them apart.
“Same with Usyk as well, he’s a smaller guy and southpaw, but they each pose a problem.
“Even Deontay Wilder, he has that phenomenal punch power. There’s some really exciting fights with the big-level names.”
Joyce, 35, looked in line to fight Usyk, 34, for the WBO ‘interim’ title while Joshua, 31, was in talks with Fury, 33.
But after the Gypsy King was ordered by an arbitrator into his contracted trilogy bout with Wilder, 35, hope of a unification with AJ collapsed.
Instead Joshua was mandated by the WBO to fight Usyk, leading to his disastrous defeat at Tottenham’s stadium.
Joyce was meanwhile frozen out of the picture and reckons Usyk always had his eye on AJ to swerve a rematch of their bout eight years ago.
He said: “I think AJ suits Usyk more than my style. I’m a hard style for Usyk to fight. That’s why I think he was patient in waiting to fight Joshua.
I say maybe Usyk. Because AJ is more likely to knock me out and with Fury you’re in danger of being outboxed.Joe Joyce on who he matches up best with
“I’d throw more shots and I’d have to have a nice training camp with Ismael Salas again and work out the game plan to beat this guy.
“It’s a fight that I can win, especially if it’s for the belts.”
Usyk outpointed Joyce over five rounds to claim victory for Ukraine over British Lionhearts.
But this time the British contender is relishing an extra seven rounds to impose his 6ft 6in and 18st 8lb frame.
Since defeat to Usyk, he has also beaten two southpaws in Lenroy Thomas, 36, and ex-champ Bermane Stiverne, 42, who Wilder twice beat.
Joyce said: “I thought I was doing well in the first fight we had, it was a very tough but enjoyable fight.
“There were plenty of exchanges and I reckon if it had gone a couple more rounds I would have started to come out on top.
“I’d have more rounds if I fought him this time around, plus I’m a lot more experienced so I know how to fight southpaws.”
Oleksandr Usyk beats Anthony Joshua on pointsCredit: Mark Robinson Matchroom Boxing
Joe Joyce during his World Boxing Series loss to Oleksandr UsykCredit: Getty Images – Getty More

JOE JOYCE has called for the International Olympic Committee to award him a gold medal following the news his 2016 super-heavyweight final was one of the manipulated matches at the Rio Games.A report from Professor Richard McLaren revealed this week that 11 matches at the Games – including Joyce’s clash with France’s Tony Yoka – was subject to a ‘system of manipulation’.
Joe Joyce was pipped to Olympic gold at Rio 2016 by Tony Yoka
The Juggernaut wants his silver to be upgraded to gold following the news of corruption
Joyce’s clash with Yoka was one of 11 matches to be manipulated during the tournament
Joe Joyce’s statement on the corruption at Rio 2016
And mandatory WBO heavyweight title challenger Joyce wants justice to be served.
The Juggernaut said in a statement: “It’s sad to see corruption in any sport but particular in boxing – the sport I love.
“I firmly believe that I was the winner of the match with Tony Yoka and deserved the gold medal.
“But on the day, I did not get that decision and at the time I accepted that.
“I scanned the Mclaren report and have read that there was corruption in the AIBA and that corruption affected the result of my gold medal match with Tony Yoka.
“If corruption has taken place, and it appears that it has, I trust AIBA and the IOC will ensure the integrity of the sport is upheld and award me the gold medal.

“I will be considering the report in detail with my legal team and await the decision of AIBA and the IOC.
“Corruption should never be allowed to succeed.”
According to the McLaren report, judges ‘used signals’ to fix multiple bouts – including Michael Conlan’s controversial loss to Vladimir Nikitin.
Former International Boxing Association president Wu Ching-kuo is alleged to have let ‘manipulation flourish’.
New AIBA chief Umar Kremlev said in a statement: “Aiba hired Professor McLaren because we have nothing to hide.
I trust AIBA and the IOC will ensure the integrity of the sport is upheld and award me the gold medal.Joe Joyce
Michael Conlan’s controversial loss to Vladimir Nikitin was one of the 11 matches also manipulated
“We will work to incorporate any helpful recommendations that are made. We will also take legal advice with regard to what action is possible against those found to have participated in any manipulation.
“There should be no place in the Aiba family for anyone who has fixed a fight.”
The IOC have yet to comment on the McLaren report.

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Joe Joyce tests his reactions in the ring with a reaction ball More

THE lack of cross-promotion in boxing over the years has been a major blight on the sport – but the days of promoters being reluctant to work with one another could soon come to an end.Fans of the sweet science know all too well the politics which have prevented big fights from happening and have led to them taking place far too late.
The lack of cross-promotion in boxing in recent years has hurt the sportCredit: GETTY
But the recently-launched Probellum promotion aims to make cross-promotion more regularCredit: PROBELLMUM
Former Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer will spearhead the promotionCredit: GETTY
The Fight of the Century between Floyd Mayweather and the recently-retired Manny Pacquiao springs to mind, as well as the elusive clash between welterweight kings Errol Spence Jr and Terence Crawford.
But a new player in the boxing world – which features some familiar faces – aims to put that to an end and make sizeable change in the sport.
The recently-launched Probellum promotion plans to revolutionise the sport with a unique blend of promotional and media content expertise.
And they have wasted little time, establishing promotional connections in Australia, the Middle East, Africa and Europe – including a multi-year deal with Wasserman, which recently announced the acquisition of Team Sauerland.
Fronting the promotion is former CEO of Golden Boy Promotions, Richard Schaefer, who told SunSport: “I’m basically going to be back in the saddle, as they say, and really do what I love and do what I do best.
“And that is to build up fights, empower fighters and create mega-events.”

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He added: “The strategic vision that was put together, it immediately fit, from a philosophical point of view, with what I stand for.”
Schaefer’s frustration with the current boxing model, as well as his eagerness to break new ground in the everchanging world of global promotion, played a huge role in his decision to be the face of Probellum.
He said: “The best fights don’t happen. And we want to work with everybody. And that really comes from Ali Shams Pour [Probellum’s founder].
“We need to think outside of our little sandbox and really think about the playground as a whole.
“And we need to be able to operate in that playground and not just in our sandbox. And we need to build bridges.
“And these are not just words, because this really is the vision and the mission of this company – to build bridges and work with everybody.
“If we have the great talent, a great fighter, we don’t need to always be our own promoter. We don’t need to have them on our own platforms.
“We want to allow the fighter to fight where they can make the biggest fights and make the most money.
Boxing has stayed behind [other sports]. So we are changing that business model totally.Richard Schaefer, Probellum president
“And if that means entering into a co-promotion agreement, we will certainly do that.
“We don’t want to be a roadblock to a fighter and we don’t want to be a roadblock to the sport of boxing.”
The interests of the fighter, not that of the promotion, will be at the forefront of all of Probellum’s decision making.
Schaefer said: “Boxing has stayed behind [other sports]. So we are changing that business model totally. This is a first in boxing.
“It’s never happened in boxing where a promoter tells you, ‘You know what? If you are an all-star fighter, we’re willing to work with another promoter.’
“‘We’re willing to work out a deal to co-promote you because we want a deal to empower you.’ That has never happened before.
“Once you’re with a promoter, you’re within that universe. We don’t want to just have that one universe. We want to have a wide universe.”
Probellum’s sole focus, however, isn’t just bringing boxing fans the fights they’re desperate to see.
The kind of talent we’re going to sign globally, from around the world, I think is going to take a lot of people by surpriseRichard Schaefer
Investing in the sport at grassroots level and ensuring young fighters across the globe have a platform to compete on is also one of the promotion’s main goals.
Ex-Golden Boy bigwig Schaefer said: “We believe to build up local talent at the grassroots level is really part of the foundation of the sport of boxing.
“If you can’t become a local star, how can you expect to become a national or international star. It’s impossible.
‘So the investment in the grassroots, and to a certain extent the amateurs as well, I think is absolutely instrumental.”
That investment will in part come in the form of performance centres.
Schaefer said: “Our goal is to have performance centres on all continents and really give these young athletes the opportunity to train and prepare with the right nutrition, the right training and the right strength and conditioning staff behind them.”
Probellum are wasting no time in getting the ball rolling, staging a number of cross-promotional events in the UK later this month and in November.
An excited Schaefer said: “We’re really going to be doing a lot of stuff in the UK and building other markets.
Schaefer is hoping to change the entire landscape of the boxing worldCredit: GETTY
“And you’re going to be seeing in the coming weeks and months a lot of announcements centred about additional co-promotion agreements, grassroots boxing, empowering fighters, network relationships.
“And, most importantly, the kind of talent we’re going to sign to Probellum.
“And the kind of talent we’re going to sign globally, from around the world, I think is going to take a lot of people by surprise.”

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Eddie Hearn says Anthony Joshua still on a ‘bigger level’ than Tyson Fury More

FORMER unified heavyweight champion Andy Ruiz Jr has revealed his team are looking at THREE potential opponents for his next outing.The Destroyer was last in action in May against veteran heavyweight Chris Arreola and laboured to a unanimous decision victory over the 40-year-old.
Andy Ruiz Jr is plotting a December return to the ringCredit: REUTERS
Adam Kownacki is in contention to be The Destroyer’s second opponent of the yearCredit: GETTY
Former IBF heavyweight champ Charles Martin is also in the mixCredit: REX
Mexico’s first heavyweight champion is itching to get back into the ring and is currently eying clashes with Adam Kownacki, Luis Ortiz and former IBF titleholder Charles Martin.
He told Fight Hype: “We’re looking at Adam Kownacki, he’s going to be fighting in October.
“There’s Charles Martin, Luis Ortiz. There’s a lot of guys out there for me. I just gotta stay busy and stay active.”
Ruiz’s return is tentatively slated for December, although that’s contingent on him landing an opponent.
The 32-year-old recently underwent surgery on his bothersome right knee but is on the road to recovery.
He said: “I just had surgery, I had a torn meniscus. I was supposed to get operated on it three years ago but I was scared.

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“They were giving me medicine for it but the doctor told me that it’s better for me to be operated on.
“I feel good, I feel blessed and hopefully, I should be getting back in there in December.”
Ruiz will be hoping to turn in a far better display later this year than he did in his comeback fight against Arreola, who forced him to take a knee in the second round.
After his hard-fought victory, he said: “Chris is a veteran and a hard puncher. We did what we had to do tonight.
“We got the victory that we wanted. I was at my lowest point and now I have to climb the ladder again. I’m thankful for the victory and I’m ready to move on to the next.
Andy Ruiz Jr is now sporting a drastically trimmer physiqueCredit: REX
“He got me with a good clean right hand in the second round. I was too overconfident and dropped my hand a bit. Hats off to him.
“We just kept pushing and pushing. I switched up and started focusing on counter-punching and working the body.
“I felt a little rust and I know other fighters can relate to that. If he wants to run it back, we’ll run it back with him.”

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Watch Andy Ruiz Jr train in ring as Anthony Joshua’s old rival proves he hasn’t lost his lightning-quick hand speed More

ANTHONY JOSHUA still has plenty of time to bounce back from his crushing defeat to Oleksandr Usyk to become a ‘long-reigning’ heavyweight champion.AJ was given a boxing lesson by his fellow London 2012 Olympian last weekend in front of a sold-out crowd at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Oleksandr Usyk dethroned Anthony Joshua and became unified heavyweight champion
The Ukrainian put on a boxing clinic at the Tottenham Hotspur StadiumCredit: GETTY
But former foe Wladimir Klitschko has tipped his old foe to bounce back from his latest lossCredit: GETTY
But the Watford warrior’s former opponent Wladimir Klitschko reckons he can still reign over the heavyweight division for years to come.
Dr Steelhammer told Sky Sports: “We have seen AJ challenged.
“I remember my time. I lost two fights within [13 months in 2003 and 2004].
“To bounce back? To eventually become one of the longest-reigning champions?
“AJ can still have his time, absolutely. It is all about how to overcome the challenge.”
Slick southpaw Usyk put on a technical masterclass on enemy territory, bamboozling AJ with his footwork and feints.

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Klitschko was blown away by his countryman’s performance, saying: “Usyk made history.
“Since 2012, I watched Usyk winning his gold and I watched AJ winning his gold.
“Usyk has been undefeated for such a long time, winning all the titles as a cruiserweight and now with the heavyweights.
“This man is something special.”
Joshua, 31, has exercised his rematch clause and is expected to renew his rivalry with the former undisputed cruiserweight king in February or March.
AJ can still have his time, absolutely. It is all about how to overcome the challengeWladimir Klistchko on Anthony Joshua
The Olympic gold medallist admits he adopted the wrong game plan for his ill-fated title defence, saying: “I’ve watched the fight, analysed my preparations and identified my mistakes.
“I’ve learnt my lesson. Don’t worry about me. My spirit is strong!”
Joshua is confident of getting the better of Usyk second time around, saying: “Just being a quick learner. Understanding the positive from the negative.
“If you look at it from a negative point of view, you’re never going to have that mindset that you can make a difference because you’re down anyway.
“But if you look at it from a positive point of view, and realise, ‘Yeah, I took a loss.
“‘But that’s a lesson, that’s a blessing. I can use it as fuel to get better.

“‘And use it as fuel to right my wrongs. You can only get better from there.
“So I’m not gonna hold myself down from the mistake I made, I’m only gonna uplift myself and say, ‘Actually, you know what? That was a tough fight.
“‘But from that fight, I’m gonna go away, get my notepad out and find ways to improve.”

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Anthony Joshua tells Oleksandr Usyk ‘I know how to beat you’ minutes after loss More