Day of Reckoning summary online: Joshua vs Wallin round by round, stats and highlights
Anthony Joshua is back. Deontay Wilder is finished.
Anthony Joshua and Joseph Parker put on clinical performances
What a night! What a card! There were knockouts galore, shocking performances, and a return to form of a former world champion.
In a night that saw knockouts but no surprises, it came as a shock the way that Joseph Parker completely dismantled Deontay Wilder. And to follow that up, it came as a breath of fresh air to see Anthony Joshua return to the form of the champion that he once was.
While Parker was a former world champion, so it wasn't a shock that he was so good. But what was shocking was that Deontay was so average. Wilder has long made his name on being able to flip a fight, turn it on one big punch. Tonight, he was outworked, out classed, and out punched by Joseph Parker. Even when Wilder landed his big shots, they were absorbed and marched through as if they were nothing.
With the crowd still reeling from that performance, Anthony Joshua gave us a surprise of his own in giving glimpses of the old champion puncher, but mixed with a new look, a new Joshua, one who could move laterally, one who could throw punches from angles.
Otto Wallin is not a former champion, and he is certainly not Usyk, but he is also not to be taken lightly. He is a tough competitor, a top-five heavyweight, a man who hurt Tyson Fury badly, and who is durable. When his corner retired him because of a broken nose, it would have been against everything that Wallin stands for. But it was the right thing to do.
Anthony Joshua was working circles around him, and Wallin was all out of sorts in there.
What does this mean going forward now? Well, for Anthony Joshua, it makes a trilogy fight with Usyk more likely. For Deontay Wilder, it might well mean the end of the road.
In the leadup to this event, there was talk of an agreement to see the long awaited Wilder Joshua clash. That is now almost certainly not going to happen.
The winner of Fury Usyk will be required to face a mandatory by at least one of the organizations. It may not be Joshua. But very soon it will have to be. Joseph Parker has a good claim to one of those mandatories as well. But Deontay Wilder is out of the picture.
And that means that the Bronze Bomber has a huge decision to make.
Goodbye!!!
That is going to do it for our live coverage of the Day of Reckoning. We hope that you enjoyed it as much as we did!
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This is the moment when Wallin was retired
Broken nose came from those booming right hands
That was the best Anthony Joshua has looked in a long time. Perhaps even since before his loss to Ruiz.
Anthony Joshua wins by TKO
Wallin is retired on his stool! They take a look at his nose at the end of round five and determine that it is broken. Wallin's team pull their man from the fight.
Wallin is back on the outside and Joshua is having his way with him. So far, Wallin is just covering up, taking shots to the gut and hoping that he can survive the big shots. But if he wants to get into this fight, he needs to find a way to go on the offensive.
That cut on Wallin's nose is running blood now, and it is below the eye, but could still be making it hard to breathe.
At the one minute mark, Joshua lands a huge right hand! Wallin is wobbled, stumbling backward! Joshua tries to jump on him and press the advantage but Wallin recovers quickly. That was a dangerous moment for the Swede!
As the round ends, Wallin takes another shot to the stomach as he leans on the ropes.
Joshua is in the middle of the ring, cutting it down, keeping Wallin where he wants him. Wallin is looking like he wants to try and land his own shots, but he is so far being stopped at every turn by Joshua.
Joshua lands a big right hand to the body and Wallin is looking all out of sorts. He is out of ideas and just waiting for the shots to come his way.
Joshua comes in with a right and Wallin lands a jab in return. So far, this is all one way traffic.
Joshua lands a straight right and Wallin counters it with a left. That is what he needs to do, counter shot for shot. AJ is a straight forward puncher and a counter puncher can get him off balance.
But so far, that is not at all what Wallin is doing, he is instead backing away, letting AJ work on the front foot.
At the halfway mark, Joshua lands a booming left hook that sends Walling stumbling. He keeps his feet, but that was a shot!
Joshua comes out jabbing and moving, sticking that big paw in Wallin's face before coming with the right hand. It doesn't land but it shows his intent.
At the halfway point, Joshua does land the right to Wallin's chest and it knocks him backward, but the Swede comes back with a one-two of his own, the first one that he has landed so far, to stop the attack.
There is blood coming from Wallin's nose now so you know those jabs are landing.
Joshua loads up a haymaker and misses with it.
Wallin comes out in his southpaw stance and immediately, Joshua tries to put him off balance by moving behind his lead hand. Joshua is the more mobile of the two as they paw and jab at each other, probing the defenses.
Joshua takes the center of the ring and Wallin is moving outside, but he is a little flat footed. Joshua, although taking the center of the ring, is somehow slightly more mobile.
AJ comes forward with a big right hand, but Wallin parries it well.
Anthony Joshua vs Otto Wallin
What a night we have had! Now we are to the big one, the fight that we have all been waiting for. Anthony Joshua and Otto Wallin.
Are we in for another surprise?
Even those who gave Parker a chance, or even picked Parker to win, could never have expected the complete domination that he displayed over Deontay Wilder.
Joseph Parker wins by UD
The judges say:
118-111, 118-110, 120-108 all for Joseph Parker.
We have to see what the judges say, but this is better than all of Joseph Parker's stint as world champion. Questions over his legitimacy as a contender, possible champion, are put to rest.
Again, I can't give a solid score since technical difficulties meant that I missed four rounds of the fight. But of the rounds that I saw (1 through 4, 8, and 10-12) I gave them all to Parker.
The final round here and Wilder starts off with a pair of rabbit punches! He gets Parker in a headlock and hits him on the back of the head twice! It is incredible that he was not warned for it.
Wilder is now whiffing, windmilling, throwing that big right hand and hoping for the best. Parker is covering well and could turn Wilder's aggression against him. Careful, Bomber...
Wilder is holding and hitting again. Again it is incredible that he is not warned. Parker ties him up and the bell goes.
There is little doubt that Parker won that.
Wilder is now coming forward, something that he has not done much of so far. He is trying to find an in but Parker is still quick, not looking tired at all. Wilder is warned for holding and hitting.
A booming overhand right from Parker sends Wilder back onto the ropes and now they are both showing signs of fatigue.
Wilder holds on but Parker punches his way out of it, a lovely left hook to the ribs getting Wilder off of him. Another overhand right from Parker finds it's mark.
Once again, DAZN technical issues mean that I missed round nine. I am infuriated!
Round 10 starts with Parker covering up and Wilder trying to land that big bomb, but it just misses. Parker lands a huge right hand of his own and Wilder ties him up.
I couldn't possibly comment on scores, having only seen six of the ten rounds so far. But from what I have seen, Parker has won most rounds. Wilder looks as if he is playing catch up. Perhaps he believes that he is behind on the cards. He throws that right with increasing desperation but Parker is covering well, weathering the storm.
Parker comes out now showing some of his speed, getting in and out, scoring well and working on the body. Wilder throws a huge right hook and catches Parker flush, but Parker comes straight back with a hook of his own. Wilder has hit Parker with some big shots but Parker has taken them well.
Just as I was about to publish my comments for round four, there were technical problems with DAZN and I have only just got my feed back. I can only ask forgiveness but I missed rounds five, six, and seven.
Now I see that my comments on round four were lost as well. AAARRRGGHHHHH! The long and the short of it is that I thought that Parker came off doing some good work in round four and wobbled the Bronze Bomber heavily.
Wilder now coming forward, jabbing and moving. Parker just evades that big right hand and wisely ties Wilder up. Wilder comes in with the double jab and Parker is now on the back foot, moving out of range.
Parker lands a big right at the same moment as Wilder lands a huge counter left that stops the attack cold. Parker covers up and gets out of trouble but that could have been a huge mistake for the Kiwi.
Parker comes out trying to get a little closer, jabbing to the body. Wilder is looking light on his feet and moving well. Parker is still working the body, but Wilder is staying just out of reach, working off the back foot.
Parker goes in and Wilder ties him up on the ropes. They trade body shots and are split by the ref.
Parker is trying to jab to the body and Wilder lands a nice counter hook, catching Parker on the way in.
We get underway and Wilder takes the outside, moving well around the edge, giving Parker the center of the ring. Parker is the faster fighter, but he comes into this bout 30 pounds heavier than Wilder. Will that slow him down? Will Wilder land that big right hand?
Both are cagey, rangey, staying out of reach and respecting the other man. Parker is feeling out the angles, trying to cut the ring down without taking any risk. He lands a nice right hand and that may be the only real big shot of the round.
The fight will be for the vacant WBC International and WBO Inter-Continental unified heavyweight titles.
It must be said that the atmosphere in Riyadh is... dead.
This is an amazing fight and one of the best cards you will ever see in your life, and there is no crowd, no fans, just a room full of multi millionaires. This fight would have had true fight fans in attendance were it held in London or Las Vegas.
I know that they are in Saudi for the money, but this is just disheartening to see.
Deontay Wilder vs Joseph Parker
Now we are into the meat and potatoes of the evening! Deontay Wilder taking on Joseph Parker in a clash of two former world champions. Both of them are trying to stake their claim on a mandatory world title shot.
AND STILL: Dmitry Bivol wins by UD
The judges saw it:
120-107, 120-107, 120-107 all in favor of Dmitry Bivol. Exactly as I saw it.
Lyndon Arthur survived that fight, but it is difficult to see any judge giving Arthur more than a round or two - AT MOST.
For me, it was all one way traffic. But you never know what the judges will see. Boxing is so subjective.
The final round now and for me Dmitry Bivol has won every round. Plus the knockdown in round 11 so Arthur needs something big here. Bivol jumps on him and is going for the stoppage! Arthur won't throw anything back!
Finally Arthur throws an uppercut and ties Bivol up. The ref is having a serious look here.
Bivol takes a minute to catch his breath and as the halfway point comes up, Arthur pushes forward but Bivol counters well.
Bivol gets Arthur back on the ropes but doesn't have enough gas to get the stoppage. It goes the distance.
Back to stick and move tactics, Bivol is landing all the shots that he wants to. As the round winds down, Bivol finally opens his hands up and goes downstairs, sending Arthur to his knees! Arthur is in trouble now!
He beats the count and will thank his lucky stars for the bell.
Bivol comes out and tries to change it up, landiing combos, upping the tempo. Arthur is not in trouble, or danger of being knocked out, but he is all out of sorts. He is now just trying to survive the fight.
Bivol comes out banging and gets Arthur onto the ropes, landing combos before Arthur ties him up. They come out to the center of the ring and Bivol gets him back onto the ropes, but can't seem to figure out how to make the most of it.
Arthur is out of ideas, but it seems that Bivol might be out of ideas as well.
Bivol is now looking a little marked up on that left eye as Arthur has landed a few hurtful shots. Both of these fighters are headhunting, looking for the big knockout shot.
At the halfway mark, Bivol steps up the pace a little and lands a series of great combinations. Jab, hook, left to the body. Arthur lands a right to the body and now it looks like Bivol is the one who is hurt.
Arthur is coming forward now, tentatively but trying to get on the front foot.
Both fighters slow down in this round, but in the case of Bivol it feels more like he is cruising rather than tired. Arthur, however, is in trouble. He has not got much left to give. Not exhausted, but just frustrated. He simply can't figure Bivol out.
Bivol steps on the gas and gets Arthur onto the ropes, unloading shots from every direction. Somehow, once again, Arthur comes through it.
Arthur is more active in this round, but he can't match Bivol shot for shot. Bivol ups his work rate to counter and stays on the front foot.
Arthur ties Bivol up, and as the round comes to a close is just trying to hang on for dear life.
Bivol is coming forward and Arthur needs to change something up here. He has lost every round so far and is in danger of being humiliated by Bivol here. This could be a clean sweep if Arthur doesn't change his plan here.
Bivol lands a lovely combination and as if he heard me, Arthur sets the range with his lead hand and throws a great right hook to the body. Bivol is still driving this fight and ends the round on the jab once again.
Arthur tries to come out on the front foot and walks onto a beautiful left from Bivol. Once again, the momentum is in Bivol's favor. He lands great jabs and follows them up with good combinations, left hooks, and Arthur is back onto the ropes.
Bivol is twitchy, confusing, unpredictable. Arthur is the opposite. He is getting caught by everything that Bivol throws.
Arthur's eye will cause problems. It is swelling now and if it closes he is finished. With impaired vision, Dmitry Bivol is the worst man to have in front of you.
Bivol comes around the guard with a left hook and lands clean. Bivol is unloadign now, with lighting fast hands, both upstairs and to the body! Arthur comes through it but he took a beating there.
Arthur jabs his way back to the center of the ring and ties Bivol up.
Bivol is back on the front foot as the round gets going and sticks a stiff jab into Arthur's face. Arthur is back onto the ropes ad is taking a punishment here.
Bivol lands a nice one-two and starts to let his hands go. Arthur is at sixes and sevens, all out of sorts!
Somehow he weathers it and jabs his way back into the middle of the ring but there are signs of damage to Arthur's eye, and it is starting to swell.
As the round closes, Bivol is back on the attack and he bullies Arthur back onto the ropes again.
Bivol comes out aggressive and has Arthur against the ropes immediately. Arthur jabs his way back to the middle of the ring.
Bivol lands a nice double hook and Arthur is back onto the defensive.
Dmitry Bivol vs Lyndon Arthur
Now we have a title fight as Dmitry Bivol puts his WBA light-heavyweight title on the line as he takes on Lyndon Arthur. Bivol is most widely known for outboxing Canelo Alvarez when the Mexican legend tried to step up in weight and simply bit off more than he could chew. Britain's Lyndon Arthur is 23-1 with 16 KOs and will be facing the fight of his life tonight.
Prior to the match, Miller complained about the fact that all three judges and the ref were from England. Well, you didn't need any English judges, or American judges, or any judges for that matter. All you needed were eyes to see that Daniel Dubois beat Jarrell Miller down. It was a comprehensive win but in the end, Dubois didn't leave it in the hands of the judges.
Daniel Dubois wins by TKO
The last round and Dubois lands a great uppercut to get going. Miller is puffed! He tries a hook but misses and Dubois comes back with a nice left of his own. You have to feel that Miller needs a knockout to win here and he is trying to go for it but he just has nothing left in the tank.
Dubois lands one big right hand after another! Miller leans onto the ropes. Dubois lets his hands go and with ten seconds to go, the ref steps in! He has seen enough!
Dubois comes out throwing big shots again and Miller is all but out on his feet! He has nothing left, he is clearly exhausted. Dubois is moving around well and fighting such a good fight here, Miller simply can't keep up. But it is nearly impossible to put the big man down!
Miller plods forward and Dubois is landing shots at will.
Dubois comes out banging! He is throwing that right hand for the first time and he just can't miss. Miller is still plodding forward, like a zombie. Dubois looks confident and is throwing that jab with spite.
Miller comes back with an uppercut to the body and Dubois slows.
The referee warns Dubois for the second time for leading with his head. He needs to be careful.
They both take over where they left off. Miller marching forward, Dubois working with a stick and move plan. Of the two, Miller looks the more tired.
Miller marches forward and walks onto a great one-two comby by Dubois. Miller again tries to close the distance and lean on Dubois.
Miller lands a nice double tap jab but he looks tired.
Miller is now on the front foot, but Dubois is still snapping out that jab, landing hard shots. They are both looking tired now, and the shots that come in are all massive.
Miller comes out walking forward, pushing toward Dubois, hoping to wear him down. He is relentless, plodding.
Dubois sticks a beautiful jab onto Miller! He was shaken there.
Dubois is dancing backward, Miller marches forward and lands a nice jab of his own onto Dubois' chin.
A nice one-two, uppercut left hook from MIller, and Dubois is hurt! That is a lot of power coming from those shots!
They grapple again and Dubois is clearly getting tired.
Dubois comes out with a big uppercut and Miller is wobbled. He can't trade with Miller! That is insane! Miller is 100 pounds heavier than he is!
Miller pushes forward, closing the gap, trying to keep the fight inside. Dubois backs off, throwing nice jabs as he moves.
Miller is now pressing forward, throwing more jabs than he did in the first round already. Dubois is trying to move and stick, but he is looking tired already.
Dubois lands a nice right hand around that guard of Miller. They grapple and Miller is trying to use his enormous frame to lean on Dubois.
Dubois lands a stiff jab and Miller looked shaken there for a second!
Miller comes forward and lands a nice body shot.
Miller lets his hands go near the end of the round and he lands some hurtful shots at the bell!
The fight gets going and both men come out to the center of the ring. Dubois is jabbing and moving. Miller is taking the shots and moving forward - his game plan might be to try to walk Dubois down, wear him out and force Dubois to question his stamina.
Dubois throws a body shot and gets a warning for a low blow. This is like deja vu all over again.
Miller is tying Dubois up now, cutting down the distance. Dubois is trying to stay on the move and lands a great body shot.
Cristiano Ronaldo is ringside as the fighters begin their ringwalks.
Daniel Dubois vs Jarrell Miller
Now time for a big matchup with Daniel Dubois and Jarrell Miller fighting at heavyweight. Dubois made his name by dropping Usyk with a low blow while Miller is best known for failing multiple drug tests in the runup to a cancelled bout with Anthony Joshua.
A suitably lucrative payday is in line for Anthony Joshua and Otto Wallin as they face off in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Saturday. We look at the numbers here!
Agit Kabayel wins by TKO
Kabayel is landing his right hand almost at will! He can't miss! A peach of an uppercut sends Makhmudov to a knee! He is down for the first time in his career!
Makhmudov beats the count but he is in trouble!
Kabeyel doesn't give the Russian any time to breathe and Makhmudov drops to a knee again! He is done for! How can he continue?
Somehow, Makhmudov gets back up but the German sends him to a knee again with a heavy body shot. The ref waves it off! That is it! Makhmudov loses his undefeated record and Kabayel wins!
Kabayel comes out of the gate with a well timed uppercut, rocking the Russian. Makhmudov fires back and lands some hurtful shots but the German looks to be in control of the pace.
Makhmudov is wobbled, under real pressure now! A huge right hand by Kabayel wobbles Makhmudov! He is in trouble! The Russian is windmilling, trying to hold off the assault coming at him!
The bell comes mercifully for the Russian.
Kabayel is moving well for a big man, slipping sideways as Makhmudov pushes forward. Good movement, hard hooks, and the Russian looks to be unsteady on his feet.
Kabayel starts nicely, landing some lovely hooks to both body and head. As the round wears on, the Russian presses forward, doing some nice work as the round closes.
Arslanbek Makhmudov vs Agit Kabayel
Now a heavyweight bout between two undefeated fighters in Russia’s Arslanbek Makhmudov at 18-0 with 17 KOs and Germany’s Agit Kabayel at 23-0 with 15 KOs.
Jai Opetaia wins by KO
As the fight gets underway, Opetaia is working southpaw and Zorro orthodox. Both men are snapping quick shots out, but Opetaia is going for the big haymaker, just missing several times.
Zorro counters nicely but Opetaia lands a huge left and Zorro is down! He is not getting up from that! What a shot!
It was a huge winging left and landed flush on the chin! That is it! He cannot beat the count!
Jai Opetaia vs Ellis Zorro
Now one of the tastiest fights on the card!
Opetaia was forced to vacate his IBF title for this bout, after a mandatory rematch with Mairis Briedis was ordered. Briedis was not ready to fight on today's card, so Opetaia had to choose between the belt and the money. That is a no brainer.
“I fought through absolute agony to win that belt, and it saddens me to relinquish it, but the fact is, Briedis isn’t ready to fight on 23 December, and I need to stay active. I simply can’t turn down a career-high payday.”
Hrgovic wins by TKO
Both men comoe out working orthodox. Hrgovic is on the attack and De Mori is immediately backed up. They trade and Hrgovic is levels above his opponent. A body shot seems to shake De Mori and he takes a knee! He is hurt right out of the gate!
He beats the count and comes back with a nice right hand, but Hrgovic won't let him rest. The Croat lands huge combos, working on that body. De Mori is turning away in the exchanges and a shot lands on the back of his head, earning Hrgovic a warning from the ref.
Another big right hand comes in and De Mori's corner throws in the towel! That is it! Their man was in no condition to continue this beating.
Filip Hrgovic vs Mark De Mori
Now a heavyweight bout between Croatia's Filip Hrgovic and Australia's Mark De Mori. Hrgovic is undefeated and has handed Zhilei Zhang a points defeat, marking him as a possible opponent for the winner of Fury Usyk.
Frank Sanchez wins by TKO
Fa come out still shaken. Sanchez is on top of him and drops him again in the opening seconds of the round! Again Fa beats the count but he is in real trouble! Fa's legs are gone!
Sanchez hammers another right hand in there and Fa goes down again! Oh, this must stop!
Fa gets up and the referee has seen enough. That is it! He waves it off!
Fa needs to get back on top of things here and he goes on the attack. Sanchez catches him with a great hook on the counter and Fa is showing some swelling on that eye.
Fa is still pushing forward and having some success, but Sanchez drops him with a cross! What a shot! That came from nowhere! Fa beats the count but he is so thankful to hear that bell!
Fa pushes forward, but gets caught by Sanchez! A beautiful uppercut catches the Kiwi flush! A heavy left to the body puts Fa all out fo sorts! He is in some trouble here!
Fa survives it and composes himself, catching Sanchez nicely at the end of the round and putting him down. No knockdown says the ref. It was a push.
Both men push forward, trading jabs, but Fa comes off more aggressive, backing his man up with some nice combinations.
Fa lands a heavy right, but Sanchez counters well and lands a few spiteful right hands!
Fa pushes forward, staying on the front foot, but taking a beating in the counter punches. Sanchez knocks Fa’s mouthpiece out with a peach of a cross.
Sanchez tries to close the distance, but Fa frustrates him, working nicely behind the jab.
Sanchez manages to make inroads and starts to land big shots to the body.
UNDERCARD: Frank Sanchez vs Junior Fa
34 year old New Zealander Junior Fa is fighting for the first time in over 14 months, taking on Cuba's 31 year old Frank Sanchez. Sanchez stopped Scott Alexander back in September in four rounds.
Both men are working orthodox. Fa stakes out the centre of the ring. He is trying to work behind the jab but Sanchez is landing hurtful shots in the counter.
According to Wilder, Joshua may earn over $40 million from his two upcoming fights, with a $35 million purse for their first of two bouts scheduled. We take a look at how the breakdown will pan out for tonight's bout here!
The riskiest of the fights on a packed card in Riyadh is Anthony Joshua and Otto Wallin. With his career on the line, AJ could have his work cut out for him.
We look at this incredibly risky matchup here!
The most talent-packed fight card you are likely to have ever seen will take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Saturday and we look at just how special it is.
We look at the full lineup and offer predictions here!
What a card!
This is the best collection of talent you are likely to see on one card for quite some time!
The Full Card
Anthony Joshua vs. Otto Wallin; Heavyweight
Deontay Wilder vs. Joseph Parker; Heavyweight
Dmitry Bivol vs. Lyndon Arthur; For Bivol's WBA light heavyweight title
Daniel Dubois vs. Jarrell Miller; Heavyweight
Jai Opetaia vs. Ellis Zorro; Cruiserweight
Filip Hrgovic vs. Mark de Mori; Heavyweight
Arslanbek Makhmudov vs. Agit Kabayel; For Kabayel's European heavyweight title
Frank Sanchez vs. Junior Fa; Heavyweight
WELCOME!!!!
Welcome to Diario AS USA’s live coverage of one of the biggest fight cards you are ever likely to see as the Day of Reckoning gets underway from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder are at long last sharing a fight card, although not against each other. AJ will take on the dangerous Otto Wallin in the main event and the Bronze Bomber will return to the ring to face the speedy ex champ Joseph Parker.