Joe Joyce vs Zhilei Zhang
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| Date | 15 April 2023 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Venue | Copper Box Arena, Hackney Wick, London, UK | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Title(s) on the line | WBO interim heavyweight title | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tale of the tape | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Result | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Zhang defeated Joyce Via Round 6 TKO. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Joe Joyce vs. Zhilei Zhang was a professional boxing match contested on for the WBO interim heavyweight title.[1][2]
Background[edit]
Joe Joyce won the WBO Interim World Heavyweight title in a September 2022 bout against Joseph Parker.[1] Zhang's last bout before facing Joyce was in August 2022 when he suffered his first loss to Croatian Filip Hrgović, after a close-fought battle where he lost by unanimous decision in what was described as a "generous" decision by broadcaster Sky Sports after a "bizarre" performance by Hrgović.[3][4][1]
The bout was held at the Copper Box Arena in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park on 15 April 2023.[1][2][5]
The fight[edit]
Repeated heavy shots from Zhang caused swelling above Joyce's right eye causing the fight to be stopped following an inspection by ringside doctor after the 6th round,[6] giving Zhang a technical knockout victory.[7] [8]
Aftermath[edit]
Following Zhang's victory, reports stated that a bout between himself and Tyson Fury were being discussed.[9] On 29 June an immediate rematch was announced for 23 September at Wembley Arena in London, England for the same title.[10] Tyson Fury took to social media to offer Joyce sparring following the announcement.[11]
Fight card[edit]
| Weight Class | vs. | Method | Round | Time | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heavyweight | Zhilei Zhang | def. | Joe Joyce (c) | TKO | 6/12 | 1:23 | Note 1 |
| Lightweight | Mikaela Mayer | def. | Lucy Wildheart | UD | 10 | Note 2 | |
| Heavyweight | Moses Itauma | def. | Kostiantyn Dovbyshchenko | UD | 6 | ||
| Lightweight | Sam Noakes (c) | def. | Karthik Sathish | TKO | 2/12 | 1:17 | Note 3 |
| Middleweight | Denzel Bentley | def. | Kieran Smith | KO | 1/12 | 0:45 | Note 4 |
| Welterweight | Eithan James | def. | Georgi Velichkov | PTS | 6 | ||
| Super-lightweight | Sonny Ali | def. | Richard Helm | PTS | 6 | ||
| Light-heavyweight | Seth Gyimah | def. | Darryl Sharp | PTS | 4 | ||
| Middleweight | Joel Kodua | def. | Dale Arrowsmith | PTS | 4 |
^Note 1 For WBO interim heavyweight title
^Note 2 For vacant WBC interim lightweight title
^Note 3 For Commonwealth Boxing Council and WBC International Silver lightweight titles
^Note 4 For British middleweight title
Broadcasting[edit]
| Country | Broadcaster |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom |
BT Sport |
 United States |
ESPN+ |
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d "The Juggernaut returns: WBO interim champ Joyce faces Zhang on April 15". BT.com.
- ^ a b "'I heat up my opponents...' - Joe Joyce engages in hilariously awkward trash-talk". 3 February 2023.
- ^ "Filip Hrgovic gets peculiar win and earns shot at Oleksandr Usyk vs Anthony Joshua winner". talkSPORT. 20 August 2022. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
- ^ "Usyk vs AJ 2: Filip Hrgovic claims unanimous decision win over Zhilei Zhang in thrilling IBF heavyweight eliminator". Sky Sports. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
- ^ "Joe Joyce to fight Zhilei Zhang as Briton takes next step towards world title". The Independent. 2 February 2023. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
- ^ Mantej Mann (15 April 2023). "'I apologise to my fans' - Relive Joyce's first loss". bbc.co.uk. BBC. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
- ^ Sajad, Kal (15 April 2023). "Joe Joyce v Zhilei Zhang: British heavyweight suffers first career loss in shock defeat". BBC.
- ^ Cameron Hogwood (16 April 2023). "Joe Joyce suffers stunning defeat to Zhilei Zhang in huge blow to world title hopes". skysports.com. Copper Box Arena, London: Sky Sports. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
- ^ "Tyson Fury could be offered lucrative fight against Zhilei Zhang who is now 'a superstar in China'". Sky Sports. 22 April 2023.
- ^ "Joe Joyce to rematch Zhilei Zhang on September 23 following first professional defeat". Sky Sports. 29 June 2023.
- ^ Ferguson, Kerr (30 June 2023). "Tyson Fury Offers Joe Joyce The 'Secret' To Beat Zhang For A Hefty Price". Boxing Social.
- ^ "Joe Joyce vs Zhilei Zhang: Date, venue, titles, tickets and pro records for boxing showdown". www.sportingnews.com. Retrieved 26 February 2023.
- ^ "BoxRec - event".