A tearful Anthony Joshua rued his second straight defeat to Oleksandr Usyk after the supremely talented Ukrainian fought back to retain his world heavyweight titles in Saudi Arabia on Sunday.

Joshua hurled two of Usyk’s belts to the canvas and stormed out of the ring in a fit of pique after letting slip a golden opportunity to hand the Ukrainian his first professional loss.

The 6ft 6ins (1.98m) Briton scented victory when he had Usyk hanging on in the ninth round, only for the mobile southpaw to come firing back and control the final stages for a split-decision win.

Joshua, 32, let fly a string of expletives – in front of the deeply conservative country’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman – in an impassioned post-match speech.

“I just spoke from my heart. It has been so tough. You see AJ holding it together. I’m a hustler, so I try to keep things together, try work hard. Make sure my team is good,” he said.

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