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Anthony Joshua beat Jermaine Franklin on points in London in his first fight since his rematch with Alexander Usyk. The former world champion controlled the fight but was unable to knock out his opponent as he intended. Two of the judges gave a 117:111 victory for Joshua, and the third ruled 118:111.
Joshua started the bout well and controlled the first two rounds with his left straight. In the third, Franklin responded with a few punches. Joshua preferred to box from a long distance. The former champion landed a strong right hand while also attempting uppercut attacks, but rarely got in close range.
In the following rounds, Joshua controlled the match with his left straight. Franklin was able to make several attacks. The American held his own despite taking several heavy blows. In the 10th round, Joshua was accurate with several hooks and uppercuts, and at the beginning of the 11th he succeeded with a strong body blow. Franklin tried to answer, but rarely succeeded. In the final round, Joshua tried to end the fight with a knockout, but Franklin held on, despite again landing some heavy blows. After the final gong, the two boxers pulled away, and their trainers had to separate them.
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Joshua now has 25 wins (22 by knockout) and 3 losses in his career. For Franklin, it was the second consecutive defeat of his career, as he also has 21 successes.
“I had opportunities to knock him out, but he was prepared. I had to knock him out, but what can I say now? The match is over, I’m looking at the next one. I wanted to knock him out, but in 15 years nobody will remember this match,” Joshua said in the interview in the ring.
When asked who he wanted to meet, he pointed to Tyson Fury. The two were in talks for a match in December, but fell through. Fury subsequently failed to reach an agreement with Alexander Usyk as well.
“I know what the fans want. The ball is in Fury’s court. It would be an honor for me to fight for the World Boxing Council (WBC) title. So wherever you are Fury, you know who my managers are, you know who the promoter is mi. We’ve talked before, let’s go ahead and do it soon. We’re not getting any younger,” Joshua added.