After rewatching the fight..

Price 2.0? Joshua has legit beat many top 10 fighters. More than anyone else in the HW division. Not really the point. He is already being compared to HW Amir Khan. I just don’t like the prospect of him losing twice to a huge underdog. We saw it already - thus the Price reference.

That's definitely harsh. It is exaggeration. AJ will always be more accomplished fighter. However, losing twice to a huge underdog, be in all-or-nothing rematch, having a massive pressure of being a national hero/hope... it all brings a bell as we saw it already. Weirdly even down to the behind the ear punch. My point, I don’t like the rematch if he takes it immediately.

.... I now think Butterbean would have beat AJ. It was later learned after the fight that AJ actually has a vag!na and his comeback fight will be against 50 year old christy Martin.

He did catch Ruiz with something big and was extremely close to finishing it. I liked watching him get finished for being a smug prick but I don't agree with this scenario that Joshua doesn't have a way to win this rematch like a lot of boxing fans think now. agree imho, he should win the rematch not saying he will, because there are some valid factors AJ needs to fight the right style, and stick to his gameplan he also needs to learn to deal with that pressure/counter-punching and he needs to deal with adversity better when it comes, and it will come ALL of those things could be put down to an "off night "..... but should not

if aj loses he is price 2.0 That's definitely harsh.

He did catch Ruiz with something big and was extremely close to finishing it. I liked watching him get finished for being a smug prick but I don't agree with this scenario that Joshua doesn't have a way to win this rematch like a lot of boxing fans think now. Of course he has a chance of beating ruiz. Ruiz is not an elite fighter. I see it 50:50 and I dont like the risk. if aj loses he is price 2.0

Problem is Ruiz's handspeed and head movement. Joshua simply has no answer for it. Jabbing and moving isn't going to do it. Ruiz will get inside the jab all night long. And sitting in the pocket and exchanging clearly isn't the answer. Terrible styles matchup. I had a feeling Ruiz could pull it off.

If AJ can learn to use his physical advantages like height and reach, he should be able to outbox Ruiz to a safe boring decision (he is not going to lose on the cards, lets be honest). If not, then he was never the top tier boxer I thought he was. He cant afford to get caught in exchanges and not move his head. he did that with Parker

Not sure about that. AJ will be more wary of Ruiz's punches and likely will be pushed back. AJ's jab is not good enough to win him rounds (not Wlad's jab). He will need to catch Ruiz with something big, but his power is not Wilder's power to put Ruiz out with a single punch. All of this indicate he will need to trade and risk at some point. Due to his inability to stay long and high, he will be in Ruiz's reach. That is very risky. On top of all this, AJ's stamina looks suspicious. If he get forced to overthink he might empty the tank much quicker and Ruiz is good enough to recognise that. I don't like this fight for AJ. Not immediately. He did catch Ruiz with something big and was extremely close to finishing it. I liked watching him get finished for being a smug prick but I don't agree with this scenario that Joshua doesn't have a way to win this rematch like a lot of boxing fans think now.

got a link? I'm on the sky sports boxing yt channel I don't see the full fight

I really feel Andy is just too fast for Joshua. I don’t think an immediate rematch is a good idea. Sometimes you need that fight in between to get you back to where you need to be.

After round one, McCracken was saying, "Don't drop down to his height, just box him." For whatever reason, AJ wasn't listening. Should've been an easy win, if he'd just stayed tall, stayed long. One thing I noticed was that Ruiz had lovely extension on some of his punches, really whipping them out. It has been mentioned elsewhere that AJ's lack of amateur pedigree, and quick rise up the pro ranks, is partly to blame for this loss. Certainly, I've never thought of him as any kind of boxing genius, but his boxing IQ can only be said to be severely limited after this latest showing. AJ wanted leverage. Did he really have a choice ? If he stayed straight up, he would have had not much power and Ruiz had a pretty good high guard. AJ's jabs were nullified by Ruiz . AJ did not throw that right to the ribs of Ruiz to keep that guard honest. Problem with AJ is his chin really. He gets hit with one shot and his freaking legs do the chacha. Never mind that he has really zero head movement.

.... I now think Butterbean would have beat AJ.

Now go watch him against Povetkin. He fought to the height of Povetkin. He box a bit but that’s because Povetkin has slower hands and wasn’t as young anymore. Ruiz is fresher, younger and had good hand speed. I said this a day or two after the fight. DO NOT TAKE THE REMATCH. Some boxers are just bad style match up for you. I was surprised they took Ruiz on, I thought the easier option was Hunter, straight up and down the way Joshua likes them. Not short, quick hands..

Sky Sports just put the fight on the yt. I am really not sure if taking the rematch is the good idea for AJ. Two things that really surprised me: 1. AJ doesn't know how to fight tall. He was bending down most of the fight to match Ruiz's level. This was a huge mistake IMO. He should look some at Wlad's fight and study it. 2. AJ cannot fight going backwards. Although AJ is very good counter puncher, he is not comfortable when pushed back. I don't like his chances in the rematch. Maybe he just never recover from the 3rd round and didn't know what he was doing, but the style was all wrong. After round one, McCracken was saying, "Don't drop down to his height, just box him." For whatever reason, AJ wasn't listening. Should've been an easy win, if he'd just stayed tall, stayed long. One thing I noticed was that Ruiz had lovely extension on some of his punches, really whipping them out. It has been mentioned elsewhere that AJ's lack of amateur pedigree, and quick rise up the pro ranks, is partly to blame for this loss. Certainly, I've never thought of him as any kind of boxing genius, but his boxing IQ can only be said to be severely limited after this latest showing.

I'm not gonna say who would win the rematch or speculate, but I do think both men should have a tune up fight before their rematch (if/when it happens) but especially AJ. Match AJ with Chris Arreola to prepare for ruiz :dunno:

Sky Sports just put the fight on the yt. I am really not sure if taking the rematch is the good idea for AJ. Two things that really surprised me: 1. AJ doesn't know how to fight tall. He was bending down most of the fight to match Ruiz's level. This was a huge mistake IMO. He should look some at Wlad's fight and study it. 2. AJ cannot fight going backwards. Although AJ is very good counter puncher, he is not comfortable when pushed back. I don't like his chances in the rematch. Maybe he just never recover from the 3rd round and didn't know what he was doing, but the style was all wrong. I agree 100% and those flaws cannot be fixed in one training camp, with the same team, he also has to lose some muscle so that he can keep the jab pumping, moving those arms takes too much energy from him

I also re watched the fight just now and feel quite confident AJ will win the rematch. He seemed comfortable to me in the first 2 rounds, knocking down Ruiz was the worst thing that could happen to him as he just got reckless and caught in the exchange. Ruiz deserves credit for getting up and keeping his composure. In the rematch Joshua will be more cautious and keep him at bay, no risky exchanges on the inside now that he respects Ruiz and his ability to beat him to the punch with great hand speed. Not sure about that. AJ will be more wary of Ruiz's punches and likely will be pushed back. AJ's jab is not good enough to win him rounds (not Wlad's jab). He will need to catch Ruiz with something big, but his power is not Wilder's power to put Ruiz out with a single punch. All of this indicate he will need to trade and risk at some point. Due to his inability to stay long and high, he will be in Ruiz's reach. That is very risky. On top of all this, AJ's stamina looks suspicious. If he get forced to overthink he might empty the tank much quicker and Ruiz is good enough to recognise that. I don't like this fight for AJ. Not immediately.

I also re watched the fight just now and feel quite confident AJ will win the rematch. He seemed comfortable to me in the first 2 rounds, knocking down Ruiz was the worst thing that could happen to him as he just got reckless and caught in the exchange. Ruiz deserves credit for getting up and keeping his composure. In the rematch Joshua will be more cautious and keep him at bay, no risky exchanges on the inside now that he respects Ruiz and his ability to beat him to the punch with great hand speed.

If AJ can learn to use his physical advantages like height and reach, he should be able to outbox Ruiz to a safe boring decision (he is not going to lose on the cards, lets be honest). If not, then he was never the top tier boxer I thought he was. He cant afford to get caught in exchanges and not move his head.