The WBO interim championship remains in Zhilei Zhang’s possession after a comprehensive victory over Joe Joyce in their rematch on Saturday night at Wembley Arena.
Zhilei Zhang stopped Joe Joyce with a brutal third-round knockout on Saturday night to retain his WBO interim heavyweight title, and called out Tyson Fury.
The pair met at the OVO Arena in Wembley for their rematch after their first fight in April.
That clash had seen Joyce lose his WBO interim championship when doctors stepped in to stop the fight given the damage to his eye from the Chinese fighter’s jab.
Speaking to TNT Sports in the ring after the fight, Zhang paid tribute to his opponent before turning his attention to Tyson Fury.
He said: “I’m happy, I’m happy. Like I said before the fight, it’s going to end sooner than the first fight. I did it.
“Joe, hell of a fighter. I like him, I respect him. I let everyone
witness Chinese power again.
“This is what we are here for, we are professional fighters. We came here to entertain the crowd, we are performers.
“I want to ask the audience a question: Do you want to see me shut Tyson Fury up?”
Questions will now be asked about Joyce’s future in professional boxing given the comprehensive defeat, and his first career knock down.
For Zhang, he has discussed bringing Fury to China for a heavyweight fight, but he is now a potential mandatory challenger to WBO champion, OleksandrUsyk, particularly if no undisputed clash with Fury can be set up.
First up for Fury, is a clash with Francis Ngannou in Riyadh next month. —Eurosport
