Anthony Joshua wants an immediate rematch with Oleksandr Usyk after being dethroned in their heavyweight bout, while the British star was upbeat despite the surprise defeat.
Joshua was stripped of his IBF, WBA and WBO titles by Usyk, who scored a unanimous points decision in just his third fight since stepping up to heavyweight in London on Saturday.
Usyk – a former undisputed cruiserweight champion – handed Joshua his second career loss, having previously been stopped by Andy Ruiz Jr. in June 2019 before reclaiming the belts in their rematch.
Joshua is hoping to do so again with Usyk after falling to 24-2 in front of more than 66,000 fans at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
"A 100 per cent, a 110 per cent," Joshua said during his post-fight news conference.
"I'm ready to get back to training. Because I did 12 rounds, my lungs, and everything... I'll be in a good place even I get back to training and pick up where we left off."
Joshua had hoped to be taking on WBC holder Tyson Fury in a lucrative showdown to decide an undisputed champion in the heavyweight division, but that plan was scuppered when his rival was ordered to face Deontay Wilder for a third time instead.
Usyk was the back-up option picked to bridge the gap, the mandatory challenger coming with a superb pedigree but limited experience at heavyweight.
Unbeaten as he improved to 19-0, Usyk's southpaw stance and smooth footwork troubled Joshua from the outset and a flurry of punches left his star opponent on the ropes and desperate for the bell in the final round.
"It's a great lesson today. It was a great lesson," Joshua told reporters.
"I know, we can look at it from a negative point of view, but for me, I gotta take it as a great lesson and build on that situation... I'm not a weak person. I don't want to be in my bedroom sulking about the situation.
"I'm looking at it like a great lesson, go back, study and rejuvenate myself because nobody's gonna do it for me."
On this day in 2014: Carl Froch knocks out George Groves in Wembley rematch
Carl Froch knocked out George Groves in their rematch at Wembley Stadium on this day in 2014 as the Nottingham fighter retained his WBA and IBF super-middleweight titles.
Froch added to his victory in the initial bout in Manchester the previous November, in which he had recovered from a first-round knockdown and terrible start to stop Groves controversially in the ninth.
This time he finished the contest with a breathtaking eighth-round punch which knocked Groves out in front of a crowd of 80,000.
Froch said afterwards: “I showed tonight why I’m a four-time champion of the world, why I’ve defended my world title 13 times on the spin.
“I am amongst the best fighters in the world – that’s who George Groves was in there with tonight.
“The finish of that (fight) showed why I’ve mixed with the elite for many years and how hard it is to get to that level.”
He added: “I am feeling unbelievably elated. This is the best moment in the history of my boxing career.”
Groves made a solid start to the contest which began cagily, with neither fighter wanting to give anything away. Froch was patient, waiting for his opening and Groves struggled to keep pace as the fight wore on.
“I knew it was only going to take a couple of big right hands to the chin and I timed it perfectly,” Froch said.
Groves said: “It’s boxing and fair play to Carl, he caught me and I went down. Obviously I felt I was doing very well in the fight, I was in my groove and I was boxing well but it’s boxing.
“I’ll come back bigger, better and stronger. Ultimately I feel like I let myself down but congratulations to Carl, fair play, he got the punch.”
It proved the last fight for Froch – aged 36 at the time – before retirement, with him hanging up his gloves with a professional record of 35 bouts, 33 wins and two defeats, 24 of the victories coming by knockout.
On This Day in 2016: Tony Bellew wins WBC world cruiserweight title
Tony Bellew won the vacant WBC world cruiserweight title against Ilunga Makabu at Goodison Park on this day in 2016.
Fighting at the home of his beloved Toffees, the Everton fan put on a show, claiming the belt with a third-round knockout.
Makabu had entered the fight as the bookmakers’ favourite and started well, sending Bellew to the canvas in the opening round with a left-hand shot.
However, the Liverpudlian quickly recovered with a barrage of combinations in the third round to floor Makabu.
The win meant Bellew won a world title at the third time of asking after previous bouts at light-heavyweight against Nathan Cleverly and Adonis Stevenson ended in defeat.
Bellew, who played ‘Pretty’ Ricky Conlan in Sylvester Stallone’s film Creed, admitted he had “achieved a dream”.
“I am Everton, and that’s why I got up. Nothing was going to stop me tonight,” he said.
“I’ve achieved a dream tonight, all those people who said I couldn’t do it, well I’ve done it. I’m world champion, that’s what I am!
“The last time I saw something like that I was in a Hollywood movie, now it’s real. I’ve lived the dream tonight. I am the best cruiserweight in the world, I have proven it tonight.”
Katie Taylor sets sights on Chantelle Cameron rematch and not retirement
Katie Taylor laughed off talk of retirement after her first professional defeat this month and is targeting a November rematch against Chantelle Cameron.
Taylor’s bid to become undisputed world champion in two weight categories simultaneously fell flat as the previously unbeaten lightweight was outpointed on her Ireland homecoming by Cameron in Dublin.
Cameron, who retained her four light-welterweight world titles with the majority decision win, has intimated she wants to step down to 135lbs to challenge for Taylor’s belts in any return bout.
And the 36-year-old Taylor insisted her only priority is another showdown with Cameron, telling RTE: “I don’t even know what retirement means. I definitely don’t feel like it’s time for me to retire.
“It will happen one day in the future, but now my sights are set on securing a rematch with Chantelle. That’s the only fight that matters to me now. I think we’re looking at a November date.
“I haven’t looked back on the fight yet. I think the right person won. I have to take the loss and move on from it. I’m just excited to get back to America to start training again for the rematch.
“I will learn from this. I definitely didn’t feel myself in there. I did feel very, very tired straight away. I’ll just have to go back to the drawing board.
“I’m definitely not going to end my career like that.”
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