OLEKSANDR USYK was so knackered after beating Anthony Joshua that he took 40 winks immediately after the fight.
The undefeated Ukrainian turned in a boxing masterclass in his Tottenham tussle with AJ last September to claim the WBA, WBO, IBF and IBO heavyweight titles.
Slick southpaw Usyk bobbed and weaved his way to a famous unanimous decision victory, which left him struggling to celebrate after returning to the fighter hotel.
The 35-year-old told Boxing Scene: “It was a really difficult fight for me.
“Everybody keeps saying it was an easy walk, but, no, it wasn’t. It was a hard fight for him and for me.
"After the fight, I came back to the hotel and I took some food and I fall asleep sitting [up].”
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Former undisputed cruiserweight champ Usyk is gearing up to face Joshua again in a multi-million-pound Saudi showdown next month.
The pair's blockbuster rematch was thrown into major doubt in February following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, although Usyk eventually managed to leave his war-torn homeland to prepare for the bout.
The proud Ukrainian said: “All I did was just pray.
“I did not want to leave Ukraine, but I visited my friends in the military, and I visited them in the hospital.
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"All of them were asking me to participate in this fight, to take the rematch, and to fight for the whole country of Ukraine.
"Even my wife, I wanted to send her and my kids out of Ukraine, but she said she would not go. [She said,] ‘I would not go, and that’s it.’”
Joshua, 32, has enlisted the help of world champion trainer Robert Garcia for his potentially do-or-die rematch with Usyk.
And promoter Eddie Hearn has urged the Brit to stick it on the champion second time around.
He said: "I don't think you can just be aggressive against Oleksandr Usyk, but you certainly have to be aggressive.
"He has to let his hands go more. He has to damage Oleksandr Usyk whenever he can and he has to get him out of his rhythm.
"I don't think Oleksandr Usyk likes getting hit.
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"I don't think he liked getting hit first in the first fight and he didn't get hit much.
"So AJ has got to take the chances when they present themselves and he's got to be smarter. But he's got to let his hands go."
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