Anthony Joshua 28-4-0 (25) vs. Frank Bruno 40-5-0 (38) - Who was better in the final analysis?

I know it's easy to forget this, but AJ was one of the better combination punchers in boxing about 4 or 5 years ago. His issues were always his chin, stamina, & heart. Skills weren't the problem. Bruno was just a big brute. I agree with that. But Frank Had some style, and in fights he sometimes presented some moxie.

What makes you think AJ was the better boxer? Better athlete possibly but better boxer? I know it's easy to forget this, but AJ was one of the better combination punchers in boxing about 4 or 5 years ago. His issues were always his chin, stamina, & heart. Skills weren't the problem. Bruno was just a big brute.

Personally, I think that if Bruno tagged him, as I suspect he might; we'd have Joshua on the floor yet again.

Its easy to **** on Joshua after that last performance, but i'm still going with him over Bruno. They both got criticised for being stiff bodybuilders, having suspect chins/cardio/psyches but I feel like it all applied more to Bruno. Joshua is also a bit bigger than Bruno was even at his biggest but if anything hes still a bit quicker and more mobile and just a better overall athlete. Power probably comparable, Bruno had a better jab, AJ puts his punches together better. I like Bruno but he really does benefit a lot from just being around in a relatively strong HW era. People give him credit simply for being there even though he never really did all that much. Probably also helps that UK HWs were largely hopeless back then compared to now too (Lennox aside and we all know he wasnt fully accepted) so Bruno was the main guy Brits had to latch on to. He went up against some tough opponents and only Tyson had a comfortable night (and Bruno even gave him some problems back when no-one did). He was ahead against Bonecrusher, Witherspoon and Lewis before being caught by huge shots. His only defeats were at the top level and he acquitted himself well. Then beat McCall to finally become champion. He's in some decent company there.

Its easy to shit on Joshua after that last performance, but i'm still going with him over Bruno. They both got criticised for being stiff bodybuilders, having suspect chins/cardio/psyches but I feel like it all applied more to Bruno. Joshua is also a bit bigger than Bruno was even at his biggest but if anything hes still a bit quicker and more mobile and just a better overall athlete. Power probably comparable, Bruno had a better jab, AJ puts his punches together better. I like Bruno but he really does benefit a lot from just being around in a relatively strong HW era. People give him credit simply for being there even though he never really did all that much. Probably also helps that UK HWs were largely hopeless back then compared to now too (Lennox aside and we all know he wasnt fully accepted) so Bruno was the main guy Brits had to latch on to.

Joshua has had the more accomplished career. I don't think there's too much doubt about that. I'm also sure he's the likely winner in a fantasy head to head. But none of that is to take away from Bruno. I've said it on here many times that his career and ability is massively underrated. ​​​​​​Mind you, so is Joshua's on here.

Joshua is the better boxer, so he wins 7 out of 10 times But Bruno could easily check that chin What makes you think AJ was the better boxer? Better athlete possibly but better boxer?

AJ is more accomplished and has the better resume but in a softer era where he had the better options but Bruno was the better fighter overall and would have knocked AJ out head-to-head. I know there has been a lot of comparisons between AJ and Bruno but Daniel Dubois seriously fights like Bruno

Joshua is the better boxer, so he wins 7 out of 10 times But Bruno could easily check that chin

I'm not really convinced yet that Dubois "won" a legit world title. He got knocked out by the previous holder of the title when they fought, didn't earn it in the ring (and how was he even in an eliminator coming off a KO loss from a previous mandatory challenge?), and this defense came against another guy with two consecutive losses to the real champ. Although his performances vs PED cheat Miller and Hypejob Hrgovic were very good, as was his destruction of AJ, who honestly looked like he beat himself mentally before he even stepped in the ring, I can't in good faith call him a world champ when Usyk is still active and undefeated. There's only one legitimate heavyweight champion at any given time, and that's the lineal champion. By that metric neither of the guys Bruno beat were ever champion either; Coatzee won a WBA title and McCall won a WBC title, but neither were ever lineal champion of the world. By "legitimate world title" I simply mean they were recognized as the top champion by the Ring, TBRB, WBA, WBC, IBF, and/or WBO. Nothing more, nothing less. No secondary or interim belts, no IBO/IBA/WBU nonsense. Charr or Trevor Bryan or Jimmy Thunder wouldn't make the list but Charles Martin does, even though I personally consider Martin a joke too. Martin held the full IBF title. A more honest way to make the comparison would be to look up the Ring (since there was no TBRB in Bruno's era) ratings for every fight both Joshua and Bruno had, but I'm a very lazy man and that's a lot of fights. So I used titlists instead because I can do that off the top of my head.

I'm not really convinced yet that Dubois "won" a legit world title. He got knocked out by the previous holder of the title when they fought, didn't earn it in the ring (and how was he even in an eliminator coming off a KO loss from a previous mandatory challenge?), and this defense came against another guy with two consecutive losses to the real champ. Although his performances vs PED cheat Miller and Hypejob Hrgovic were very good, as was his destruction of AJ, who honestly looked like he beat himself mentally before he even stepped in the ring, I can't in good faith call him a world champ when Usyk is still active and undefeated. I think ddd could best usyk next time. DDD has improved.

Frank Bruno vs fighters that won a legitimate world title: L vs James Smith KO 10 W vs Gerrie Coatzee KO 1 L vs Tim Witherspoon TKO 11 L vs Mike Tyson TKO 5 L vs Lennox Lewis TKO 7 W vs Oliver McCall UD 12 L vs Mike Tyson TKO 3 Anthony Joshua v fighters that won a legitimate world title: W vs Charles Martin KO 2 W vs Wladimir Klitschko TKO 11 W vs Joseph Parker UD 12 L vs Andy Ruiz Jr. TKO 7 W vs Andy Ruiz Jr. UD 12 L vs Oleksandr Usyk UD 12 L vs Oleksandr Usyk SD 12 L vs Daniel DuBois KO 5 Titles won Bruno: WBC Joshua: WBA/IBF/WBO (twice each) It's Joshua and it's really not close. Bruno was more or less a gatekeeper. I'm not really convinced yet that Dubois "won" a legit world title. He got knocked out by the previous holder of the title when they fought, didn't earn it in the ring (and how was he even in an eliminator coming off a KO loss from a previous mandatory challenge?), and this defense came against another guy with two consecutive losses to the real champ. Although his performances vs PED cheat Miller and Hypejob Hrgovic were very good, as was his destruction of AJ, who honestly looked like he beat himself mentally before he even stepped in the ring, I can't in good faith call him a world champ when Usyk is still active and undefeated.

I really believe Josh is better

Frank Bruno vs fighters that won a legitimate world title: L vs James Smith KO 10 W vs Gerrie Coatzee KO 1 L vs Tim Witherspoon TKO 11 L vs Mike Tyson TKO 5 L vs Lennox Lewis TKO 7 W vs Oliver McCall UD 12 L vs Mike Tyson TKO 3 Anthony Joshua v fighters that won a legitimate world title: W vs Charles Martin KO 2 W vs Wladimir Klitschko TKO 11 W vs Joseph Parker UD 12 L vs Andy Ruiz Jr. TKO 7 W vs Andy Ruiz Jr. UD 12 L vs Oleksandr Usyk UD 12 L vs Oleksandr Usyk SD 12 L vs Daniel DuBois KO 5 Titles won Bruno: WBC Joshua: WBA/IBF/WBO (twice each) It's Joshua and it's really not close. Bruno was more or less a gatekeeper.