Oleksandr Usyk has warned Anthony Joshua not to mess with his teammates - or it will end up in a "bare-knuckle" fight.
The Ukrainian star came out on top at the second time of asking over Joshua in Saudi Arabia last night but this time via split decision. After the final bell sounded, Joshua was visibly emotional and upset by the result and after paying tribute to Ukraine with Usyk in an emotional prayer, he embarked on a series of outbursts.
He first tossed the belts out of the ring and stormed out towards the dressing rooms, before returning to deliver an emotional post-fight speech after hijacking the microphone and dragging Usyk to the centre of the ring. Joshua was seen confronting Usyk and his teammates after the final bell in a frustrated mood as he looked to explain his case.
However Usyk has told Joshua that he could have faced devastating consequences if he continued to push some of his teammates: "I feel nothing but respect for Anthony Joshua, he was a bit emotional and he was pulling some of my team-mates," Usyk said in the post-fight press conference when asked about his rival's reaction. "But I don’t recommend him a bare knuckle fight with them because they are horrible street fighters."
Joshua was visibly angered by the events that unfolded in the ring where he was unable to capitalise on any big opportunities to close the show with Usyk once again able to get ahead on the scorecards. And during the chaotic post-fight scenes, Joshua saluted his opponent in a bizarre post-fight rant.
The British star has now reflected on his actions and explained why he angrily stormed out of the ring following his defeat. "When you try and do things from the heart... it was from the heart," he said at the post-fight press conference. "I knew I was mad at myself, not at anyone, just at myself. I thought I had to get out of there because I was mad.
"Like anyone, when you're mad you might do stupid things. Then I realised, 'S*** it's a sport, let's do the right thing and come back'. In the speech I just spoke about where I came from, I was on the road and in the ring I made a transition. I laid it all on the line with my speech.
"It's been so tough. You see AJ holding it together; I'm a hustler... but it comes at a cost, a big cost. It will never break me but it takes real strength to not let it break me. Tonight there was a crack in the armour because I'd taken a defeat."
