Joe Joyce reveals why he weighed in so light for his first fight with Zhilei Zhang and opened up on the tactical changes he will be making for their rematch this weekend.
The 38-year-old British heavyweight dropped a drastic amount of weight ahead his first fight with Zhang in April – tipping the scales over a stone lighter than in his previous bout.
Joyce, a 2016 Olympic silver medalist, weighed in at 256lbs for his heavyweight clash with the Chinese southpaw, while Zhang tipped the scales at 278lbs for the bout.
Joyce, who was visibly leaner as he took to the scales at the weigh-in, came in 15lbs lighter then his fight with Joseph Parker – then tipping the scales at 271.6lbs, six pounds heavier than his fight against Christian Hammer before that.
The Juggernaut was not planning to weigh-in so light and explained how he went into camp ‘at fight weight’ and struggled to consume food after long and grueling sessions.
Joe Joyce (left) reveals why he weighed in so light for his first fight with Zhilei Zhang (right)
Joyce dropped over a stone for his first fight with the Chinese heavyweight in April
Joyce says his weight wouldn’t have been a talking point if he had beaten Zhang, but insists he is looking to come in heavier for their rematch this weekend.
Speaking exclusively to Mail Sport, Joyce said: ‘No there wasn’t [a reason behind coming in much lighter than his previous fight]. I had a pre-camp before Christmas which was a three week training camp. That went well and then over Christmas, I wasn’t eating badly and I was being active so when I went into camp I was already at fight weight.
‘Then obviously with the training I did, I just stripped more weight off. It was quite hard to eat as well given how late my sessions were ending. It was hard to keep the weight up.
‘Normally Salas wants my weight lower but for Zhang, who is a big heavyweight, it was probably too low. I don’t know, if I had won the fight and had good footwork and head movement and beat him, people wouldn’t be criticising my weight.
‘They would be saying ‘ah that’s why he was able to move around like that or whatever’. But, it didn’t really pan out that way.
‘People were looking for problems or reasons for why I lost. They were pinning it on one thing. But, before the fight, everyone was saying I have this unbelievable chin and that I can’t be knocked out. It didn’t really help me – I got my eye bashed up instead.’
However, Joyce felt his weight would have given him the advantage over Zhang in the later rounds if his eye wasn’t bashed up. He said the Chinese heavyweight was ‘starting to slow down and take backwards steps’.
He told Mail Sport: ‘There was an AI scoring system which someone showed me and it revealed how many punches were being thrown and how many punches were landing.
Joyce doesn’t regret fighting Zhang despite losing his WBO Interim World Heavyweight title
Joyce (pictured with Frank Warren) will be looking to get revenge against Zhang this weekend
‘It showed that I was landing over 100 punches a round or something. As the rounds continued and it went in the later rounds, I’d have out pointed him with the amount of shots I threw and the punches I landed if I didn’t knock him out.
‘If it wasn’t for the eye and I had of carried on, I would have got in there and probably beaten him later on. He was starting to slow down and take backwards steps.’
Nevertheless, Joyce believes his loss to Zhang is a ‘blessing in disguise’ and says it will open the door to other heavyweight boxers as they will feel they can beat him after watching his performance in April.
When asked whether he regretted his first fight with Zhang, Joyce said: ‘That’s a tricky one. Would I preferred to have not lost and fought someone easier. It’s a difficult one.
‘I have the rematch now and it’s going to be a bigger fight but it’s a hard test and a hard challenge. It also adds to the story. I don’t know. If I could do it all again, would I have taken it? It’s a difficult one to answer.
‘Winning the rematch is going to be even sweeter. It might even make some people more willing to fight me since they can see I can be beaten. But, if I was beaten comfortably, certain fights wouldn’t come about. So it could be a blessing in disguise, especially if I win the rematch.’
Joyce is confident he can beat Zhang during this weekend’s rematch at Wembley’s OVO Arena and blames a ‘last minute change of strategy’ for his defeat in their first fight.
Joyce also spoke about how he spent more time boxing southpaws in this camp as he realised the ‘defence and the attack is completely different’.
The Juggernaut said: ‘I’ll be making minor tweaks [rather than an overhaul in tactics]. There was some strategy last minute that Salas got me to do to stay away from his lead hook and his lead left jab. But, then I hadn’t practiced it enough to get away from the left backhand.
‘Zhang is a very good counterpuncher so whenever I was engaging with him at range, he would be countering me with the left hand as I was bringing my guard back. Just as I punched, he was throwing before I could get my guard back.
‘Yeah I just feel like I needed more time. Zhang is a natural southpaw. He’s been fighting orthodox fighters his whole career.
‘In his previous fight, he fought Hrgovic – who has a very similar style to mine. So, he was much more prepared for me than I was for him. Going back into camp, I needed to do some more practice with a southpaw stance. The defence and the attack is completely different.’
