EXCLUSIVE
Joe Joyce was cruelly denied gold at Rio 2016 by some scandalous judging.
Most onlookers felt Joyce had won every single round of his super heavyweight final against Tony Yoka.
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Punch statistics from BoxStat revealed that Joyce had outlanded the Frenchman by 99 to 47 over the three, three-minute rounds.
However, two out of the three judges scored the fight in Yoka's favor with scorecards of 30-27, 29-28, 28-29.
Eight years removed from his Olympic heartbreak, Joyce is still baffled by the result.
"I won every round. I outpointed him every round, and hit him with loads more shots if you look at the stats," he told talkSPORT.com.
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Asked if it has changed his perspective on the sport, Joyce added: "Yeah, because it's not like the 100 meters, where there's a clear winner, the person runs fast and then it goes through the gate, it's on decisions, and there can be a lot of manipulation."
In 2021, Professor Richard McLaren filed a report that claimed 11 fights at the Rio Games - including Joyce's bout with Yoka - may have been subject to a 'system of manipulation'.
McLaren's team was called in when an internal probe by the International Boxing Association (AIBA) found 'strong suspicion' surrounding AIBA's French former executive director Karim Bouzidi and several referees and judges.
When the news broke, Joyce called for the 'integrity of the sport to be upheld' by awarding him the gold medal.
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But no results from those Games have yet to be overturned at the time of writing.
Following that fateful night in Brazil, both Yoka and Joyce turned over as professionals with contrasting levels of success.
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While Joyce has established himself as a top 10 heavyweight in the paid ranks with notable triumphs against Daniel Dubois and Joseph Parker, Yoka has struggled to transition.
The Parisian puncher is currently on a three-fight skid having fallen to defeat against Martin Bakole, Carlos Takam, and Ryad Merhy.
All three defeats were on points and the split decision/majority decision results give the impression that they were all close encounters.
But the reality is that only his last outing with Merhy was competitive.
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Both Bakole and Takam battered Yoka from pillar to post, especially the former, who knocked down the Olympic gold medallist twice en route to getting his hand raised.
Yoka returns to the ring this weekend against 8-15 journeyman Amine Boucetta on a small hall card at the Tolworth Recreation Centre while Joyce headlines the O2 Arena against Derek Chisora on the same night - a stark reminder of how quickly the tables can turn in boxing.
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