Zhilei Zhang targets Tyson Fury after brutal knockout win over Joe Joyce

Zhilei Zhang is targeting a world title bout with heavyweight champion Tyson Fury after the Chinese fighter delivered a devastating knockout victory in his rematch with Joe Joyce on Saturday night.

Zhang claimed a 10th-round TKO win over Joyce in their first fight in April, but the 40-year-old southpaw was even more clinical the second time around and ended a contest he was already dominating with a brutal one-two combo.

The second, fight-ending, shot was a perfectly-timed right hand that sent Joyce to the canvas for the first time in his career. While the British boxer managed to stagger to his feet, referee Steve Gray waved off the fight to hand Zhang an impressive statement victory.

“I’m happy, I’m happy. Like I said before the fight, it’s going to end sooner than the first fight. I did it," Zhang said inside the ring at Wembley Arena in London.

“Joe, I like him, I respect him. I let everyone witness Chinese power again. This is what we’re here for, we’re professional fighters. We came here to entertain the crowd, we’re performers."

Zhang, who extended his professional record to 26 wins (21 KOs) against one defeat and one draw, then gave clear insight into what his top priority would be next.

Turning to the crowd, he said: “I want to ask the audience a question: Do you want to see me shut Tyson Fury up?”

Fury, the undefeated WBC champion, returns to the ring next month in a crossover bout with former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou in Saudi Arabia.

Still, a fight with Zhang, holder of the WBO's interim heavyweight title, holds plenty of appeal, particularly after impressive successive wins over Joyce, who had been talked about as a potential world champion contender.

Joyce, a late-comer to the professional