Joe Joyce says his pressure would ultimately get to Oleksandr Usyk

Fresh off of his stoppage win over former titleholder Joseph Parker this past weekend, newly minted WBO interim champion Joe Joyce wants the full title. That belt is currently held by Oleksandr Usyk, so naturally that's the fight Joyce will be pushing for.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Joyce says he's targeting Usyk and that if Usyk passes he'll have to vacate the belt. But if Usyk were to fight him as a mandatory challenger, he thinks his consistent pressure would get to the Ukrainian champion.

“If Usyk doesn’t want to fight me then he has to vacate the belt and then I get elevated to full champion. From there, I can defend the belt,” Joyce told Sky Sports News. “I think I would start to get to him,” Joyce warned, “if I can keep the pressure up. He is a very skillful fighter, but at this level it’s all going to be tough from here on in.”

Joyce, who has before faced Usyk in the amateur ranks, says a meeting between them now would play out much differently than the points loss he took back then, reasoning that he's a much improved and different fighter now.

Above all, Joyce says he's happy to finally start receiving the credit he deserves and looks to parlay that into bigger opportunities.