Barry Hearn has heaped praise on Oleksandr Usyk following his points victory over Anthony Joshua in Saudi Arabia.
The Ukrainian was made to work harder than he would've liked after a dominant display first time around but following a torrid ninth round where Joshua looked to be taking over, Usyk pulled the fight back in his favour.
Before the fight, many were expecting a different approach from Joshua, but the British fighter was still cautious in the fight’s early stages as he looked to target Usyk’s body.
Despite the switch in tactics, Joshua couldn't sustain his attacks, and although the Hall of Fame promoter was supporting ‘AJ,’ he couldn’t hide his admiration for Usyk.
“Usyk has a God given ability to fight,” said Hearn when speaking to IFLTV in the fight’s immediate aftermath.
“He’ll take anybody on, and he doesn't really care. He’s a professional boxer, he’s representing his country, and he’s on a mission. Oleksandr Usyk is going to take some beating because he’s a class act.”