Boxing
Anthony Joshua: I couldn't see in the ninth round
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Anthony Joshua explained that he had problems with his vision starting in the ninth round of his fight with Oleksandr Usyk.
Joshua was palpably behind on the scorecards against his Ukrainian mandatory challenger and looked to force a result as the fight headed to the championship rounds. However Usyk more than held his own, appearing fresher, and problems with the 31-year-old’s sights might have had an effect too.
The defeated champion wants to activate his rematch clause and his promoter Eddie Hearn expects him to get back to the gym to refine his approach. Joshua backed up the sentiment, saying after the fight: "I can't go back and sulk - that's wasting time.
"I couldn't see in the ninth round, couldn't see anything really, because my eye was shut.
"It was a good experience because in adversity you've just got to learn to control yourself, stay on top of things, so when I couldn't see anything - it's the first time that it's happened in a fight."
“I’m ready to get back to training. It was a good twelve rounder, so I’ll be in a good place when I get back into training to pick up where we left off.”
