The Briton activated a clause in the contract for a rematch with Zhang Zhilei
Promoter Frank Warren said the British Joe Joyce didn’t plan on turning down a chance to rematch the interim WBO heavyweight champion Zhang Zhilei.
“When we first got into the fight, Joe was the champion and Zhilei was second, so Joe went straight to the guy who was his immediate opponent without delay. We added a rematch clause in there and after the fight we weren’t sure if Joe would be ready because he obviously got a pretty bad eye injury that the doctor stopped the fight. So we were talking about Zhang fighting Tyson but Joe said no, he didn’t want anyone in between and wanted a rematch.”
“It was his prerogative, he insisted on it, and we did it for him. Now it’s up to Joe. He’s a smart guy and one of the best people I’ve worked with in boxing, a good man with a great team. He knows what he has to do and I think he has the opportunity to regain the title.
“If he wins, he will be the mandatory challenger for the WBO title. and Joe wants to fight whoever will hold the title after the fight between Usyk and Daniel Dubois.”
The British rematch with Zhang will officially take place on September 23 in London. The revenge will take place thanks to Joyce’s activation of the right to re-fight, which was spelled out in the boxers’ contract for the first fight.
The first fight between Zhang and Joe took place in April. Joyce lost by technical knockout and lost the interim WBO title. In the 6th round, the referee was forced to stop the fight due to a large hematoma around the Briton’s right eye.
For Joyce, the loss to Zhang was the first in his professional career. 40-year-old Zhilei, thanks to the victory over the Briton, became one of the contenders for the fight with the holder of the WBO/WBA/IBF/IBO titles Oleksandr Usyk. On August 26, the Ukrainian will fight with Daniel Dubois.
Source: Sportarena
I am Ashley Ortiz and I am a professional journalist working for Athletistic. My specialty is in sports journalism, particularly boxing. I have written articles for some of the most renowned publications on the subject, and my work has been featured across both print and digital media platforms.
