Joe Joyce suffers defeat by unanimous decision to Filip Hrgovic on return to ring in Manchester

Joe Joyce suffered defeat by unanimous decision to Filip Hrgovic in his return to the ring in Manchester on Saturday.

Fighting for the first time since defeat to Derek Chisora in July 2024, the 39-year-old Brit lost a tight fight where Hrgovic grew in dominance, earning scores of 97-93, 96-95, 98-92 in his favour by the judges.

Joyce was originally meant to fight Dillian Whyte in an all-British affair, but a finger injury suffered by the latter saw Hrgovic step in at late notice.

The 32-year-old Croatian hadn’t fought since a defeat to Daniel Dubois in June, in what was the first professional loss of his career after 18 bouts to that point. His record now reads 18-1 after his defeat of Joyce.

More to follow…

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