From Benn's fail to AJ's fall: Boxing's biggest talking points from 2022

Here are six of the biggest shocks, events and talking points from boxing's squared circle in the past year.

Usyk beats Joshua again

In a closer affair than their first meeting, Oleksander Usyk (35) - fresh from the frontline of Russia's war in Ukraine - showed his skill and durability by defeating Anthony Joshua (33) for the second time in Saudi Arabia.

Winning by split decision, Usyk overcame a much-improved AJ, particularly in the championship rounds, retaining the IBF, WBA and WBO heavyweight titles he initially won from his opponent in their first battle.

Surviving an onslaught from Joshua in the ninth round, in which Usyk looked to be almost out on his feet, Usyk would dominate the final few rounds, showing his speed and slickness and coming close to knocking the Briton out in the tenth.

It was a gigantic result for the heavyweight boxing scene and got the ball rolling for a potentially mouth-watering unification bout with Tyson Fury (34), while Anthony Joshua's status amongst boxing's elite fell under a dark cloud once more, particularly after an emotionally-charged, tearful outburst in the next day's press conference.

Fury's AJ ultimatum

With a dream 'Battle of Britain' to unify the heavyweight belts in tatters after Joshua's loss to Usyk, Fury lent out a very public olive branch to the Londoner.

The Gypsy King suggested the pair "give the fans what they want" and proposed a defence of his WBC crown for December, with the caveat that they fight for free and on free-to-air TV.

However, he also set AJ's team a deadline of less than a week for all contracts to be signed.

A social media back-and-forth followed, with Joshua releasing a video saying he accepted the terms and that everything was with his lawyers. But the deadline passed without any firm agreement, and Fury went on to book his December bout with Derek Chisora (38) instead.

Fans are now wondering whether Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua will ever face off in the ring while still their primes.

Benn fails drug test

Ahead of what would have been one of the biggest bouts of the year in Britain, surpassing even that of Fury's fights with Derek Chisora and Dillian Whyte (34), old family foes the Benns and the Eubanks were at it again.

Following in their fathers' footsteps, Conor Benn (26) and Chris Eubank Jr (33) were finally set to go toe-to-toe in the ring, emulating the fierce rivalry of their dads that captured the public back in the early 1990s.

But just two days before the massive fight on October 8th at London's O2 Arena, Benn dramatically failed a random doping test.

Trace amounts of the fertility drug clomiphene, which elevates testosterone levels in men, had shown up in a test taken by the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association (VADA).

Confusion and calamity ensued, with the fight initially "suspended" as B samples were also tested before the fight was eventually pulled altogether.

Benn has since continued to deny any wrongdoing but has voluntarily relinquished his boxing licence in the meantime.

Chris Eubank Jr will fight Liam Smith next in Manchester on January 21st.

Jake Paul defeats Anderson Silva

It was another year of success for the polarising YouTuber Jake Paul (25), who once again cherry-picked an ageing MMA icon.

The stakes were raised this time, however, as Paul went up against UFC middleweight legend Anderson Silva (47).

Many felt the Brazilian icon would have too much technique and speed for the relative rookie, given the impressive nature of his glittering UFC highlight reel.

Yet the American would come out as the victor, even knocking Silva down towards the end of the bout, much to the shock of the crowd and fight fans around the globe.

The fight generated 200-300,000 PPV buys according to Wikipedia and was deemed a huge success, although conspiracy theorists still suggest that something fishy was going on with regard to the knockdown, scoring and outcome of the fight.

Hatton's return

Walking out using a zimmer frame and flanked by two nurses, old fan favourite Ricky Hatton (44) made his return to the ring for an exhibition bout with old friend Marco Antonio Barrera (48).

Ten years after his final official fight - a knockout defeat to Vyacheslav Senchenko in Manchester - Hatton put on a show for his hometown fans during the eight-round affair.

The veteran lost over four stone for the bout and consistently traded vicious blows with Barrera throughout the encounter, with both seemingly forgetting it was merely an exhibition and looking to knock the other out.

A cracking contest ensued between two greats of the sport, providing The Hitman with a proper sense of closure on his proud career.

Alvarez loses to Bivol

Dmitry Bivol's (32) unanimous decision victory over Canelo Alvarez (32) sent shockwaves through the boxing world, with the Russian outclassing the Mexican in a stunning display.

It was only the second loss in 61 bouts for Alvarez, with all three judges scoring the bout 115–113 in Bivol's favour.

Never far removed from controversial scoring, all three judges had scored Alvarez as the winner of the first four rounds, a fact that received criticism from the wider public with many feeling the fight was nowhere near as close as was being suggested.

The stats also showed otherwise, with Bivol landing more punches than Alvarez in every single round of the fight.

Bivol retained his WBA super light-heavyweight title while Canelo was shaken from his perch atop the pound-for-pound best, and while he stated an immediate rematch would be in his sights, he instead opted for a third fight with Gennady Golovkin.