British boxer Anthony Joshua (24-3, 22 KOs), who threw the Ukrainian's championship belts out of the ring after his defeat by Oleksandr Usyk (20-0, 13 KOs) in a rematch, said he was reacting to an insult from him. According to the 33-year-old Watford native, Oleksandr allegedly said something racially offensive to him.

Joshua said that Usyk, who called him "big and strong", provoked him at a time when his emotions got the better of him.

"There were certain things said in the ring. There were no excuses. Usyk said 'you're big and strong'. It sounded like 'you're strong'. Many athletes from the African-Caribbean community are told that they are strong. And I feel like it's quite humiliating because they're not talking about your talent," Anthony was quoted as saying by boxing-social.

The Briton admitted that he knew about such insults firsthand, as he is a black fighter.

"So when he said I was big and strong, it was like a wake-up call. At that moment, I was on edge and it just blew me away. It was pure, uncontrollable emotion," Joshua summed up.

As OBOZREVATEL previously reported, after the fight, Anthony wanted to leave the arena immediately, having started a fight with his teammates and a skirmish with the fans.

His promoter Eddie Hearn gave an explanation for his ward's actions.

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