Joe Joyce knocks back retirement suggestions as the 38-year-old heavyweight insists he will ‘rebuild and come back’ after his crushing knockout defeat against China’s Zhilei Zhang

• The English heavyweight was knocked out by China’s Zhilei Zhang on Saturday
• Joe Joyce has batted back retirement suggestions after his latest defeat
• Mail Sport’s new WhatsApp Channel: Get the breaking news and exclusives here

Joe Joyce has quashed retirement discussion and vowed to ‘rebuild and come back’ after his second defeat against China’s Zhilei Zhang on Saturday evening.

The heavyweight contender was once heralded as the next challenger for world champion status before two consecutive defeats against Zhang derailed those ambitions.

Zhang delivered the devastating knockout blow in the third round that crumbled the Englishman and left him requiring oxygen in the ring after the bout, however, Joyce has vowed to make another return.

Speaking after defeat, the 38-year-old said: ‘I’m feeling good, I’m feeling OK. 

‘It’s not the end of the world. I can rebuild and come back. I am going to take a bit of time to reflect and review where I went wrong.’

Joe Joyce has vowed to ‘come back’ after his third round defeat against Zhilei Zhang on Saturday

Joyce’s (right) career now looks at a crossroads after his latest defeat against the Chinese heavyweight

Joyce received oxygen while sat on his stool in the ring after the fight against Zhang

40-year-old Zhang – nicknamed the Big Bang – keeps his status as the WBO interim champion and is the mandatory challenger for the winner of a fight between Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury, should that ever get sorted.

Where Joyce advances to next is unclear with the latest defeat knocking him out of title contention and faces a long road of lesser known bouts if he wants to get back to his previous platform.

Former super middleweight champion Carl Froch claimed after Saturday’s Wembley showdown that Joyce’s next best move might be to call it a day on his time in the sport.

Zhang maintains his status as as the WBO interim champion after a second win over Joyce

Zhang (right) landed a devastating knockout blow on Joyce (left) in the third round

Joyce was later seen backstage laughing and smiling after his fight with Zhang after exiting the ring without conducting his post-fight interviews.

Despite impressive early career victories placing him amongst the names of the upcoming heavyweight stars to keep an eye on, Joyce was always face a race against time to make it to the top.

The Putney heavy-hitter didn’t turn professional until the age of 32 and there was an expectation that he would need to move up the rankings quickly to land title opportunities.

Joyce endured 15 consecutive victories, 14 by way of knockout, prior to facing Zhang for the first time and a return could be a long time away.

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