THE TRUTH: Joshua's best days are behind him.

[dan_cov]

I don't think he is done he has simply found his level and limitations.
He's not the best never will be but he is a top 3-5 HW and no shame in that.

Good HW but wasn't, isn't and never will be what he was sold as.

[4truth]

Anthony Joshua will win the rematch, but? He is for sure still dealing with issues from his Ruiz I loss. I don't think, I have ever seen a fighter 'Top Champion, at elite level so affected long term by a loss'.

That is why you cannot compare Anthony Joshua to Lennox Lewis, as Lewis obliterated his opponents in multiple ways in rematches. Lennox Lewis actually evolved after each loss, and they did not negatively traumatize him long term etc

Joshua is at-least aware that his approach was wrong, and he needs to go back to his old style. Joshua actually was in better condition vs Pulev than against Usyk. I think Joshua once again was slightly over-trained. For me whenever Joshua starts getting around 240 - just under 240 pounds, it is a clear indication that he is obsessing in training. Clear sign that he is training in a manner that does not embrace his fundamental strengths.

Joshua from this point on wards, needs to look back in his training documentation pre Ruiz I. Then duplicate that training and lifestyle once again now, because that is exactly the type of Joshua and game plan that is going to cause Usyk issues.

They say that you need to dedicate 10'000 hours to become a expert at anything. Joshua even though he started boxing late, the amount of hours of dedication he is has put in over this past decade must of well surpassed 10'000 hours 'If he was going to turn into a technical genius, he would of done already'.

Joshua needs to understand that, it is all good and well going down the intricate technical route 'And he has improved this area of his game, but he has neglected what won him Olympic Gold, what got him up off the canvas to blast out Kiltschko'.

The neglect needs to stop now, Joshua has to embrace all the things some of his opponents would mock him about. His athletic attributes, combination punching at mid-range, and basic fundamentals. Essentially what got Joshua to the top was, a physical presence, power, determination and combination punching.

Joshua represses that presence these days, and since Ruiz I 'Was trying to be something he is not innately'.

I think Joshua will win the rematch via stoppage, the rematch once again will be won or loss in training camp 'This time around, I just believe Joshua will prepare optimally'.

I thought Joshua’s condition for Usyk was about as good as I’ve ever seen him, probably about as good as it gets. He could have easily gone 12 if he were fighting at the sustainable pace he was fighting at the first 4 rounds but unfortunately, he was losing. So Joshua did what he had to do, he upped his effort level and evened up the fight. After 4 rounds of being on the attack, he really needed to take a round off but Usyk was right back in his face forcing Joshua to respond to every feint.

If Joshua can’t improve on his conditioning and I don’t think he can, he’s going to need to find ways of winning rounds without spending so much energy to do it.

Joshua needs to, imo, employ a similar strategy to the one Manny Steward taught to Wlad. He is going to need to land a lot of jabs and he’s going to need to shut down the action when Usyk gets close.

[Robbie Barrett]

He's been overthinking, trying to be the "boxer". He knows if he loses the Usyk rematch he's finished so i think he'll go out and just fight, like Wlad did in the Joshua fight.

[whollisboxing]

Or, he will come back and KO Usyk and guys like you will never give him credit

Exactly, and that’s why I like AJ’s approach after the loss. No need to dwell on it because there will always be critics. Just accept the loss, learn from it and prepare for the rematch with a positive attitude.

[deathofaclown]

He's been overthinking, trying to be the "boxer". He knows if he loses the Usyk rematch he's finished so i think he'll go out and just fight, like Wlad did in the Joshua fight.

I think some people need to watch that fight back

People act like Wlad come out swinging, he didn’t. The first few rounds were a nothing affair, pretty dull. Wlad got dropped and then started swinging a bit for survival. Then he landed a big right hand because Joshua is a stiff lummox with no head movement, then the rest of the fight was Wlad plodding away, unable to finish the job because he was old, and history shows us old fighters lose the ability to pull the trigger and finish the job, especially when they have been humiliated and schooled in the previous fight like he had with fury.

If Wlad had truly come to fight, he would’ve finished the job. He was aggressive for about 1 round, then couldn’t pull the trigger and paid the price for it. Wlad had no confidence anymore after Fury humiliated him in his backyard.

The reality is Wlad had made a career of beating stiff fighters like AJ, that’s why he looked good in moments. AJ would be tailor made for Wlad a few years earlier. But he was just old, had no real fight left in him and no confidence after losing his belts to Fury.

[Robbie Barrett]

I think some people need to watch that fight back

People act like Wlad come out swinging, he didn’t. The first few rounds were a nothing affair, pretty dull. Wlad got dropped and then started swinging a bit for survival. Then he landed a big right hand because Joshua is a stiff lummox with no head movement, then the rest of the fight was Wlad plodding away, unable to finish the job because he was old, and history shows us old fighters lose the ability to pull the trigger and finish the job, especially when they have been humiliated and schooled in the previous fight like he had with fury.

If Wlad had truly come to fight, he would’ve finished the job. He was aggressive for about 1 round, then couldn’t pull the trigger and paid the price for it. Wlad had no confidence anymore after Fury humiliated him in his backyard.

The reality is Wlad had made a career of beating stiff fighters like AJ, that’s why he looked good in moments. AJ would be tailor made for Wlad a few years earlier. But he was just old, had no real fight left in him and no confidence after losing his belts to Fury.

Wlad was up for that fight and abandoned his safety first approach. After chasing the chicken Fury around for 12 rounds he knew he had to dig deeper to have a chance against Joshua.

[deathofaclown]

Wlad was up for that fight and abandoned his safety first approach. After chasing the chicken Fury around for 12 rounds he knew he had to dig deeper to have a chance against Joshua.

Wlad let his hands go in plenty of fights. He was far more aggressive v Pulev. He wasn’t afraid to throw if he had a big stiff target in front of him like Joshua or Pulev.

[Tatabanya]

I think some people need to watch that fight back

People act like Wlad come out swinging, he didn’t. The first few rounds were a nothing affair, pretty dull. Wlad got dropped and then started swinging a bit for survival. Then he landed a big right hand because Joshua is a stiff lummox with no head movement, then the rest of the fight was Wlad plodding away, unable to finish the job because he was old, and history shows us old fighters lose the ability to pull the trigger and finish the job, especially when they have been humiliated and schooled in the previous fight like he had with fury.

If Wlad had truly come to fight, he would’ve finished the job. He was aggressive for about 1 round, then couldn’t pull the trigger and paid the price for it. Wlad had no confidence anymore after Fury humiliated him in his backyard.

The reality is Wlad had made a career of beating stiff fighters like AJ, that’s why he looked good in moments. AJ would be tailor made for Wlad a few years earlier. But he was just old, had no real fight left in him and no confidence after losing his belts to Fury.

The fact that Joshua was extremely close to being knocked out by the version of Klitschko you just described should certify AJ's actual level once and for all.

[BangEM]

The fact that Joshua was extremely close to being knocked out by the version of Klitschko you just described should certify AJ's actual level once and for all.

The fact that Fury almost got knocked out by a Cunningham that was coming off 3 consecutive losses and had to win to pinning his head and hitting him should certify Fury’s actual level once and for all.

[Tatabanya]

The fact that Fury almost got knocked out by a Cunningham that was coming off 3 consecutive losses and had to win to pinning his head and hitting him should certify Fury’s actual level once and for all.

I concur. Fury is currently the best heavyweight around, but that does not translate into authentic greatness in my book, certainly not for having beaten a statue in Klitschko and a man with a huge right and nothing else in Wilder.