JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia — Anthony Joshua promised to stick to a simple
game plan on Tuesday when he tries to wrest back his world heavyweight titles
from Ukraine’s Oleksandr Usyk in Saudi Arabia.
اضافة اعلان
The towering
Joshua lost by unanimous decision last September in London to Usyk, who
returned home to fight the Russian invasion before being given a special
exemption from military duty.
The August 20
“Rage on the Red Sea” in Jeddah will be the second fight in Saudi Arabia for
Joshua, 32, who avenged a shock loss to Andy Ruiz Jr in Riyadh in December
2019.
It is latest in
a series of high-profile Saudi events which have drawn accusations of “sports
washing”, or detracting attention from the country’s human rights record.
“The fight with
Usyk, he bust my arse for some rounds. I had to take that defeat like a man,”
Joshua, wearing white headphones around his neck, told a press conference in
Jeddah.
“But I hold
myself accountable. I’m someone who can admit when I’m wrong and hold my head
high.”
“I don’t like to
overcomplicate the situation, because there’s genius in simplicity.”
“Sometimes if
you keep things simple, you can achieve great things.”
The two fighters
faced off in a long stare-down for the cameras after the press conference,
where Saudi officials talked up their commitment to grassroots boxing and
developing the sport.
Usyk, 35, face
partially hidden by a bucket hat with a Ukrainian flag, referenced the turmoil
at home but said he preferred to let his fighting do the talking.
“As we all know
we are not in the best conditions at the moment back at home. But we are doing
what we have to do. We are doing our job and we are working hard to achieve our
goals,” he said.
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