Comments Thread For: Anthony Joshua: Southpaws Are Nightmares - I Would've Smoked Usyk If He Wasn't Lefty

[M312]

I don't think AJ should say he would've beaten Usyk if he wasn't southpaw, that's just silly, but I have no problem with him saying he struggled because he was a southpaw.
There's very few southpaws around, most people struggle to adjust to them.

E.g. Fury with Wallin, Wilder with Ortiz.

Usyk is 10x the boxer of both, at least FAR more accomplished than both.

He might just be too good and awkward for everyone.

[SteveM]

———-
Precisely. Meanwhile, a short pudgy Ruiz beat the crap out of him without being a southpaw.

Andy Ruiz has a LOT of natural boxing ability - who have you got vs him and Ortiz? I'm convinced Andy will fight for a title again.

[GlassJoey]

He would have smoked him if he was weed !

[blackroseboxing]

The problem AJ has is that he started boxing far too late. When you are a kid you pick things up far easier, it becomes second nature to you. Joshua just doesn’t have the footwork and boxing skill he should have learned as a kid. Usyk on the other hand looks fluid, you can tell this guy has been at it since he was little. Anyone that has played sport at a reasonable level knows how easy it is to beat someone that didn’t pick up their sport until adulthood, the technique is never quite as good in the late starter no matter how hard they try. I believe Joshua is trying to learn new things, but at this stage of his career it will take 20 times longer to learn anything new than it would take a kid. Wilder has the same problem, but he knows his deficiencies better than Joshua and always looks for the killer right hand. You can tell by watching Usyk and Fury that they have been boxing most of their lives, they have a natural instinct inside the ring that must be taught and honed early. It is not Usyk being a southpaw that is making him beat AJ, its the technique and skills he learned as a child that are making him beat a man considerably bigger than himself.

[hhh1200]

AJ just said what Canelo, Charlo, GGG, Munguia, and BJS (southpaw but lower level) refuse to say about Andrade so they feed the fan boys boring fighters nonsense.

Welcome to Bob Arum;s Pet Rock Boxing Fan Club

[Apollo7]

Would be pretty funny if Usyk fought orthodox in the rematch and beat him.

But yeah it's not unusual for people to struggle more against southpaws.

Also I don't see this as making an excuse. He's admitting to a flaw or deficiency.

[boxing IQ]

Joshua couldn't smoke him if he had one arm.

[P to the J]

Southpaw heavyweight world titlists, all time:
Michael Moorer
Ruslan Chagaev
Chris Byrd
Corrie Sanders
Sultan Ibragimov
Charles Martin
Oleksandr Usyk

That's it.

So it seems that the overwhelming majority of heavyweight champions haven't had much of a problem beating southpaw contenders.

Probably more the fact that only 10% of people are left-handed, and i bet fewer than 10% of boxers are left-handed because society used to do some weird **** with left handed children

[P to the J]

And if my aunt had balls,she'd be my uncle.

I’d be married to Kate Beckinsale with 4 kids by now… If I didn’t keep having to waste all this time in front of judges over breaches of court orders

[P to the J]

The problem AJ has is that he started boxing far too late. When you are a kid you pick things up far easier, it becomes second nature to you. Joshua just doesn’t have the footwork and boxing skill he should have learned as a kid. Usyk on the other hand looks fluid, you can tell this guy has been at it since he was little. Anyone that has played sport at a reasonable level knows how easy it is to beat someone that didn’t pick up their sport until adulthood, the technique is never quite as good in the late starter no matter how hard they try. I believe Joshua is trying to learn new things, but at this stage of his career it will take 20 times longer to learn anything new than it would take a kid. Wilder has the same problem, but he knows his deficiencies better than Joshua and always looks for the killer right hand. You can tell by watching Usyk and Fury that they have been boxing most of their lives, they have a natural instinct inside the ring that must be taught and honed early. It is not Usyk being a southpaw that is making him beat AJ, its the technique and skills he learned as a child that are making him beat a man considerably bigger than himself.

Word. If Bivol and Berbetiev fought up at HW, they’d piece him and most of the division up as well for the same reasons you outline