Former world champion Anthony Joshua has defeated Sweden’s Otto Wallin as he continues his quest to return to the top of the heavyweight division.
Joshua busted up and hurt Wallin with a dominant five-round win with solid, technical skill, hunting for a finish from the opening bell.
Joshua, who from 2016 to 2022 fought exclusively in world championship contests, was in the unaccustomed position of having his third consecutive non-title bout against Wallin.
“Not so much a throwback fight, just another day in the office,” said Joshua. “You want to do whatever it takes to be victorious. That’s all I want to be.”
Wallin’s only previous professional loss had come against Fury. But he had no answer from the opening bell against Joshua, who, with just over a minute remaining fifth round, produced a superb left hook that had Wallin stumbling toward the ropes.
Joseph Parker also re-established his heavyweight title credentials with a victory on the same Riyadh bill on Saturday.
Earlier, Parker comprehensively defeated Wilder in the former World Boxing Council champion’s first bout in over two years, in a dominant display that appeared to scupper pre-fight talk the American would next face Joshua.
There had also been speculation that whoever triumphed in a Wilder-Joshua bout would then face the winner of February’s clash between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk, who between them currently hold all the major versions of the world heavyweight title.
But Joshua said he had paid no attention to Wilder’s fight, telling DAZN: “I wasn’t watching. I just focused on myself…Deontay, everything that he said about me, I could rip him apart right now, but I’m going to take the higher ground.”
Victory gave Joshua his third win of 2023 after he beat Jermaine Franklin Jr unanimously in April before a seventh-round stoppage of Robert Helenius in August.
It also took the 34-year-old’s professional record to 27 wins and three defeats as he inflicted the first inside-the-distance loss of Wallin’s career.
Joshua is looking to become a three-time world champion following two defeats by Usyk and a shock 2019 loss to Andy Ruiz.