Usyk defeats Anthony Joshua, retains world boxing titles by decision

Were there any doubt Oleksandr Usyk were truly the better man when he defeated Anthony Joshua in their first meeting, the Urkainian erased them on Saturday in Saudi Arabia.

Usyk won the rematch to remain WBO, WBA and IBF heavyweight champion inside the Jeddah Superdome.

After 12 hard-fought rounds, Usyk had his hand raised after taking a split decision in a fight where there was truly no doubt he deserved to be named the victor.

There were scary moments at times for Usyk, who again used slick boxing to largely befuddle Joshua throughout the bout.

Joshua made a mid-fight adjustment to focus on Usyk’s body, which eventually allowed him to fire upstairs, seeming to badly hurt Usyk in the ninth round.

Usyk showed true championship qualities as he weathered the storm before coming back in Round 10 to dominate the final three rounds of the fight and cement his victory.

The official scorecards after the fight read 115-113 and 116-112 for Usyk with one 115-113 card inexplicably turned in for Joshua.

• Source: CBSSports.com