Notebook: Zhang to Joyce: 'I’m here to end your career'
Update on Ryan Garcia-Golden Boy case and possible fight opponent; British regulator slams Conor Benn bout; Rocha-Santillan countdown; Robeisy Ramirez challenger; Quick hits; Show and tell
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Heavyweight contender Joe Joyce sat at the dais a few feet from his conqueror, Zhilei Zhang, and was asked this week why he exercised his right to an immediate rematch.
Joyce smile and looked toward Zhang and the WBO interim heavyweight belt sitting in front of him at their news conference and said, “Because I want that title back that he took from me last time. So, I want it back.”
Then Joyce added, holding his look at the belt, “It looks real shiny over there,” as he rubbed his hands together and smiled, eliciting laughter from the crowd.
They will meet in an immediate rematch on Saturday (ESPN+ in U.S, 5 p.m. ET; TNT Sports in U.K.) at OVO Arena Wembley in London, five months after the underdog Zhang battered Joyce’s right eye in a sixth-round knockout to take the interim belt and his position as one of unified titleholder Oleksandr Usyk’s mandatory challengers.
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