On 25 September 2021, Anthony Joshua entered Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London with the home advantage in his heavyweight title defence against Oleksandr Usyk.
The vast majority of the 66,267 fans gathered in the stadium were there to root for the Briton, but all the supportive cheers in Spurs’ home ground could not spur on Joshua to overcome Usyk, the Ukrainian southpaw comprehensively outboxing “AJ” over 12 rounds.
In doing so, Usyk took the WBA, WBO, IBF and IBO titles from Joshua, handing the 32-year-old the second defeat – and second title loss – of his professional career. Meanwhile, the 35-year-old Usyk stayed unbeaten with the victory, which made him a two-weight world champion following his reign as the only undisputed cruiserweight title holder of the four-belt era.
But how exactly did Usyk beat Joshua? Ahead of the pair’s highly-anticipated rematch in Saudi Arabia this Saturday, Indy Sport rewatched the first fight and broke down the rounds that proved key for Usyk.
Round 1
Joshua throws many jab feints early on. Usyk slips to the right and throws an uppercut – the first example of him playing with angles. He lands a straight left with no set-up, before Joshua responds with a right cross. Usyk circles one way then the other. He begins to throw his own jab feints, while also feinting bigger movements with his lead hand. Plenty of head movement from both fighters.
Both men paw with their lead hands, each cancelling out the other. Joshua misses with a scraping right uppercut – one of his best shots historically – with Usyk’s southpaw stance meaning he’s further away than most opponents would be. The pair trade body jabs, then Usyk feints a couple up top and slings a left cross behind it, tagging Joshua. He tries the same again, but Joshua reads it and evades. Usyk steps to the left, then back to the right and throws a clubbing right hook. Again, it evidences Usyk’s superios footwork, speed and use of angles, even though the punch isn’t heavy.
Usyk circles to his right for a while, and eventually Joshua swings a left hook to try to intercept the Ukrainian, who is too far away. AJ then catches Usyk with a short right cross, punching down to meet the challenger, who is stepping in to target Joshua’s body. Already Joshua has begun to move his head less. Usyk tags him with a backhand straight to end the round.
Round 2 sees Usyk continue to assert himself as the busier fighter, both in terms of movement and output.
Round 3
Usyk lands his first notable combination of the fight. The southpaw hops back to avoid a right straight to the body, then steps in to clip Joshua with a jab, left cross and right hook – the latter sending AJ off balance. Joshua seeks payback by coming forward, but he can’t land the jabs, let alone back them up with heavier shots.
Usyk remains elusive, circling one way then the other, proving hard for Joshua to read. The southpaw also throws a loaded lead hook, not content to be on the back foot.
Joshua remembers to move his head, evading some jabs, so Usyk sticks him with a straight left to the midriff. Joshua keeps the Ukrainian at bay with an outstretched lead hand and intermittent jabs, though Usyk slips them and parries. Usyk hides behind Joshua’s outstretched arm before popping out to time two left crosses in a brief period. He then whips around a left hook that stuns Joshua, who worriedly tries to clinch after the final shot.
Usyk is able to hold the Briton just far enough away to avoid damage before they’re separated. Just before the bell, Joshua catches a slightly over-eager Usyk with a right hook after rolling under Usyk’s own attempt. It doesn’t land clean, yet a nervous-looking Usyk circles away – the first example of Usyk feeling Joshua’s power, but AJ struggling to string effective punches together.
Round 4 is uneventful but close, possibly going to Joshua. Joshua also takes Rounds to 5 and 6 on Indy Sport’s scorecard, as Usyk reduces his output slightly. Joshua predominantly uses straight punches in that spell but catches out Usyk in Round 5 with hooks, before stalking the challenger in Round 6 and landing a sharp straight and clean right hook late in the frame. Neither shot has much wind-up.
Round 7
Usyk arrests momentum in Round 7 by re-establishing his jab with irregular timing. Joshua becomes so focused on figuring out the timing of Usyk’s jab that left crosses catch out the Briton; one of them, hidden behind a double-jab feint, sends Joshua stumbling backwards.
Joshua begins to let his right hand go more in Round 8, timing some decent uppercuts with Usyk in close. They land to the body and potentially win him the round. Usyk puts together some flurries, but they’re largely blocked.
Usyk again regains momentum in Round 9, pressing forwards in measured fashion while making Joshua miss through constant head movement. Joshua tries to clinch a few times, but Usyk frames against him, and the referee is quick to separate the pair.
Round 10
A crucial round for Joshua, with Usyk arguably three rounds ahead. Usyk presses forward at once and proves slippery when Joshua tries to clinch. Usyk implements a movement pattern that has worked throughout much of the fight, doubling the jab then stepping quickly to the right as AJ looks to return fire. Joshua lands a straight to the body and one up top, which cuts Usyk, but he’s not crafting combinations.
Usyk is tempting Joshua by leaning in but then slipping the champion’s punches. Joshua’s right eye has begun to swell shut. Joshua increases his output and presses forward, but Usyk initiates some effective clinches and uses the jab to deter AJ.
Usyk is again fast out the gate in Round 11, landing a right uppercut and left hook. Usyk strings together a series of snapping left straights.
Round 12
Joshua needs a finish, but again it’s Usyk who starts the round aggressively. Usyk with a rare, doubled left hook. Usyk lands numerous straight shots as well, however, boxing positively while Joshua waits for one golden punch.
Usyk further increases his output and varies it, tagging AJ with hooks and uppercuts as the Briton is backed up against the ropes late in the round. Joshua slips a number of the punches, but it’s a bad image on which to end the fight.
Indy Sport scores it 116-112, Joshua winning Rounds 4, 5, 6 and 8.
