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The winner of Saturday’s rematch between Joe Joyce and Zhilei Zhang is likely in line for a big payday next year. Either Joyce or Zhang will likely be the No. 1 opponent for undisputed heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk next year after Usyk knocked out Daniel Dubois in his second heavyweight title defense. Zhang claimed the interim WBO Championship with his sixth round knockout of Joyce back in April, but he is only a slight favorite per the boxing betting odds in the rematch.
Heavyweights Joe Joyce (15-1 with 14 knockouts) and Zhilei Zhang (25-1-1 with 20 knockouts) will square off for the second time in the UK in less than six months. After meeting at the Copper Box in London last time, they will meet at the OVO Wembley Stadium in London, England on Saturday, September 23, 2023. The main card will get underway at 2:30 p.m. ET while the main event will take place at 5:30 p.m. ET.
Boxing Betting Odds at Caesars Sportsbook
Joe Joyce +110
Zhilei Zhang -130
Over/Under 9.5 Rounds
Joe Joyce was an overwhelming favorite coming into the first fight by the boxing betting line. Joyce was -1000 or -1100 to defeat Zhilei Zhang depending on where you bet on boxing matches. However, Zhang was the much better fighter on the night and took the fight to Joyce throughout the evening until the referee stopped the fight in the middle of the sixth round.
Joyce was seen as the next great British heavyweight before that fight. He won medals as an amateur super heavyweight in 2015-16 at the World Championships, Summer Olympics, and the European Games, and he was on the fast track to title shots after knocking out his first nine opponents. His knockout of former WBC heavyweight champion Bermane Stiverne in the sixth round back in 2019 showed that he was the real deal, and he also secured knockouts over Daniel Dubois and Christian Hammer.
Almost exactly a year ago from Saturday, Jones claimed the interim WBO heavyweight championship. He was facing Joseph Parker in Manchester, England, and the former heavyweight title holder had only lost to Anthony Joshua and Dillian Whyte in his career. Additionally, Parker had never been knocked out, but Joyce proved to be too much and knocked out his opponent in the 11th round. Those impressive performances made him a popular pick against Zhilei Zhang, yet the underdog caught Joyce completely unprepared.
Zhang peppered Joyce with his left hand throughout the first fight, and the heavy favorite seemed to have no defense. Joyce started wobbling as early as the second round, and his right eye was pretty much swollen shut by the end of the end of the fifth round. He put forth a valiant effort and tried to soldier through it with bravado and aggression, but it wasn’t enough and the ref called the fight a short time later.
It was by far the biggest win of Zhang’s career. Even though he was a decorated amateur boxer himself, claiming eight medals between 2004 and 2011 at either the Olympics, World Championships, Asian Games, or Asian Championships, his pro career didn’t start with much fanfare. Zhang knocked out his first opponent in just 17 seconds, and he ran his record to 13-0 before he was able to challenge for the WBO Oriental heavyweight championship. He was able to knock out Peter Graham just before the end of the first round in that bout, and that started a string of six straight first round knockouts.
His first hiccups came a couple years ago when he had to settle for a majority decision draw against Jerry Forrest. Zhang was dominant against his next two opponents, but then he fell to Filip Hrgovic by unanimous decision in Saudi Arabia last August. That led to doubts about his ability to beat Joyce, and that victory kept him from being knocked down a few rungs in the heavyweight division.
You won’t get the same juicy odds that you did the first time, but Zhang should be able to double down and go 2-0 against Joyce with another knockout victory this weekend.
Play: Zhilei Zhang to Win
