Joe Joyce enters the fight of his life this month – a rematch with Zhilei Zhang, the man who handed him first professional loss and snatched his ‘indestructible’ aura in the process.
Zhang’s accurate and punishing left hand left the Brit’s eye swollen to the point that the referee waved it off. The sixth round stoppage crowned ‘Big Bang’ the WBO Interim Champion and secured him a future shot at the full belt against Oleksandr Usyk.
Joyce has one last chance to regain that position with his contractual rematch clause, and has been preparing diligently to do so.
Speaking on The First Bell Boxing Show, former cruiserweight champion and popular pundit, Johnny Nelson, looked back at what went wrong in April.
“In my head, in the last fight Joe got greedy. As in he tried to knock him out. Worse thing you can do, because when you punch him you’re eventually gassing yourself out. So what he’s been doing to everybody else was done to him.
What Joe should do it not get greedy, be Joe. Let the shots go. This happens when you fight somebody that’s easy to hit. When I was at cruiserweight and I fought heavyweights, you can get greedy because you’re faster than them. You whack him, and whack him again and think ‘I’m gonna get rid of him.’ He’s still there and you’re gassed.”
Nelson laid out a rematch plan for Joyce – who says he will come in heavier this time around – and said he believes that it will be revenge rather than repeat.
“In this fight, Joe’s got to be consistent, be The Juggernaut, let the shots go in and out. Don’t stand in the pocket with the guy because you’re up against a bigger version of yourself, but he’s smarter than Zhang. And that’s how he beats him as far as I see it.
He can win, I believe he does win.”
Joyce’s chance at revenge is on September 23 in London, and UK fans can tune in on TNT Sports.