How Anthony Joshua Knocked Out Kuburat Pulev
Here's how Anthony Joshua vs Pulev Fight went.
ROUND ONE
Not much in the first round. AJ standing off his challenger, wondering why he isn't all-guns blazing like he was in 2014 vs Klitschko. There's a good left from Pulev in there, but Joshua's opening gambit of jabs earn him a slender 10-9.
ROUND TWO
Joshua is the first to really unload to a huge roar from the crowd, but it's all to the gloves of Pulev, who laughs it off. The Bulgarian makes his first real efforts to come after the champ but eats some solid shots each time. Pulev mouths off to Joshua at the end of the three minutes and the referee has to frogmarch AJ back to his corner. Some of that smoke we saw at the weigh-in... 20-18 Joshua so far.
ROUND THREE
Joshua explodes halfway through the round after connecting with a massive right! Shot after shot and though Pulev tries to laugh it off, he soon walks away from AJ and is given a count by the official. AJ then scores another knockdown! That's a 10-7 round but Pulev isn't done just yet.
ROUND FOUR
There was a swing or two between the fighters after that third round bell, too. The fourth is more subdued than that massive round three, which is good news for Pulev. However he'll be aware that he has to offer something now otherwise it's Sophie's Choice between an easy AJ points win or an AJ knockout. 40-34 Joshua.
ROUND FIVE
Another big right from Joshua late in the round, but he can't follow up this time as he did in the third. Pulev then lands his best shot of the fight and forces AJ to clinch. Joshua really needs to be wary of a second wind from the rugged Bulgarian. He has a wide points lead and would be best served letting Pulev get desperate to claw back. 50-43 Joshua.
ROUND SIX
Now past the round where he fell in his last world title tilt against Wlad Klitschko, Pulev is coming forward with more frequency now, knowing he needs to be pro-active from here on out. Joshua, nonetheless, evades most of his efforts and has a smile on his face as he initiates counter-jab mode. 60-52 Joshua.
ROUND SEVEN
AJ re-introduces the straight right/left hook combo a couple of times, connects with a nice uppercut in the clinch and later goes to work with planted feet on the hunched-up challenger. Pulev is soaking it up and still smiling, however. He may well drag this the whole 12 after all, but it's one-way traffic for now. Couple of nice shots from Kubrat late on but it's 70-61 Joshua for me.
ROUND EIGHT
AJ returns to the body jab he has employed sporadically thus far, but this time sticks with it to put Pulev's latest attempt to show some initiative on a leash. Peter Fury is here, and he told the Sky broadcast team he thinks AJ should have been more aggressive and taken up residence in the centre of the ring to get this finished by now, but we're heading towards a shut-out at this rate nonetheless.
ROUND NINE!
The champion finesses his way past an urgent Pulev, strings together a few short uppercuts and then drops Pulev for a third time in the fight. And then a fourth! With seconds left in round nine, the official counts Pulev down! Joshua wins via ninth-round KO
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