Anthony Joshua vs. Carlos Takam: Was It a Controversial Stoppage?

In October 2017, Carlos Takam challenged reigning heavyweight champion, Anthony Joshua, in the boxing ring. The Cameroonian Frenchman stepped into the ring on short notice. As usual, the British heavyweight champion was shooting for gold through all rounds. While the scorecards suggested a clean lead for Joshua, it seemed like Carlos Takam was performing at par with the Englishman. However, things turned for the worse in the tenth round.

Anthony Joshua seemed worn out as he clinched more in this round. Despite that, both Joshua and Takam did not show any signs of slowing down. Both fighters were connecting effectively. With 1 minute and 30 seconds left in the round, Anthony Joshua was throwing nonstop jabs and hooks and Carlos Takam was parrying them away and dodging them. But referee Phil Edwards had seen enough and called a stop to the contest in favor of the reigning champion.

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This decision to call off the fight was met with an uproar amongst boxing purists. Many thought that the referee’s stoppage was uncalled for and controversial, as Carlos Takam did not even seem injured. Some argued that the Frenchman was dodging and parrying Joshua’s jabs when the referee intervened. If Phil Edwards had not called a stop to the contest, would we have seen Takam pull off an upset win over the champion?

Carlos Takam on the controversial stoppage

Upset with the 10th round stoppage, Carlos Takam later shared in an interview that he was not happy with the decision. He also expressed that he did not understand why the referee called the fight when he was not even hurt. Takam acknowledged that Anthony Joshua outperformed him in most rounds, but appreciated his ability to fight back from a losing position. He added he had planned on giving it his all in the final two rounds to secure a finish over Joshua.

“The guy stopped the fight in the tenth round and we still had two rounds. In those two rounds, I was going to give it everything. When I spoke to my coach in the corner, he told me before the tenth round I should go easy and save myself for the last two rounds. Then I would give everything to end the fight. I said ‘Okay, let’s do that. But then the guy stopped the fight and I don’t know why. I couldn’t believe it. It was crazy,” said Carlos Takam.

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Chances of a Takam-Joshua rematch

Ever since his defeat against Joshua in 2017, Carlos Takam has expressed his displeasure over the outcome of the fight. He believes that he could have pulled off an upset in the later rounds. But will fans ever see the two put an end to this controversy and confusion?

Ahead of his heavyweight clash with British boxer Joe Joyce (12-0-0) on Saturday, July 24, Carlos Takam has once again sparked a conversation around facing Joshua again to settle it once and for all. His bout against Joyce is critical for both fighters as it could lead to a mandatory title contention match against the winner of the title fight between Anthony Joshua and Oleksandr Usyk.

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Carlos Takam has fought many challenging opponents including Derek Chisora since his defeat. Anthony Joshua has also grown further with his first defeat against Andy Ruiz Jr. Would you like to see Carlos Takam and Anthony Joshua run it back?