AJ To Defend His WBO Title Against Mandatory challenger Oleksandr Usyk

The president of the World Boxing Organisation has forced Anthony Joshua into defending his WBO title after winning his rematch with Andy Ruiz Jnr.

Francisco Varcarcel, the president of the organisation said in a statement that Joshua will have to defend his WBO title against mandatory challenger Oleksandr Usyk within 180 days of Saturday’s win.

That means that Joshua will now have to face the prospect of defending his WBO title before June 4th, and If he does not agree to meet the Ukrainian former cruiserweight king before then, he will be forced to vacate his belt, according to Mail Online Sport. 

The publication also added that If Joshua does vacate his belt, Usyk could face either Dereck Chisora or Joseph Parker for the strap, which would divide the belts further across the division.

 On Saturday night, Anthony Joshua defeated Andy Ruiz Jr in their world heavyweight title rematch in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The British-Nigerian boxer who suffered a shocking defeat to Andy Ruiz Jr back in June in New York City, regained his IBF, WBA and WBO titles as he defeated the Mexican-American boxer by unanimous decision.