Comments Thread For: Anthony Joshua vs. Francis Ngannou - Done Deal, On Date TBD In Riyadh

[Toffee]

Sounds like what Ortiz may have done to pay the family bills.

Ortiz hedged his career on being given a Wilder fight. But he certainly didn't dive.

[pollywog]

Ortiz hedged his career on being given a Wilder fight. But he certainly didn't dive.

You dont certainly know that.

If Ortiz - with health issues and a family - was paid more not to win in a certain manner and in a particular round what do you think he'd do ?

[Weebler I]

You do that when you're champion. Not when you're ranked 3 or 4... it's odd that anyone thinks he must fight everyone below him, while everyone below him should get to fight up the rankings against him. I'm not sure where Joshua's obligations come from.

In the meantime we've got a guy posting who seems to think it was fine for Fury to defend his title and number 1 ranking against Chisora and Ngannou while remaining otherwise inactive.

It's a very clear double standard.

It's what he said though, and recently, not when he was champion.

Who should he fight? The only 2 boxers above him are Usyk & Fury. Zhang & Hrgovic are the next two down.

I don't really have an issue with the Ngannou fight but if Joshua wins it won't do much for his legacy.

[Toffee]

You dont certainly know that.

If Ortiz - with health issues and a family - was paid more not to win in a certain manner and in a particular round what do you think he'd do ?

I don't think he'd throw everything he had at Wilder and leave him staggering back to his corner on the bell. He'd have to be pretty ****ing precise to know the exact amount of shots Wilder could take without being knocked out.

I don't doubt there's plenty of dodgy stuff in boxing, but I know what I saw. The 'fixing' is done in the matchmaking, not in the ring.

[Toffee]

It's what he said though, and recently, not when he was champion.

Who should he fight? The only 2 boxers above him are Usyk & Fury. Zhang & Hrgovic are the next two down.

I don't really have an issue with the Ngannou fight but if Joshua wins it won't do much for his legacy.

I think a dominant win puts to bed the idea that Fury is so far above him that he doesn't need to fight him. Warren and Fury's rhetoric has been that Ngannou is a very good fighter and that Fury's close win had merit.

In my view it's just a money fight and he's entitled to do that. Legacy impact will, as you say, be minimal. The legacy impact of most fights is minimal.

I don't doubt he would face Zhang and Hrgovic for the right money or straps. But they're dangerous fights he doesn't need otherwise. Neither of them get him to Fury without a belt in the mix.

[Roberto Vasquez]

That doesn`t mean anything. Another great triangle theory from you.

Why did it mean something when Zhang knocked Joyce out then? Because that's his one big win.... If you take that away who has he beaten?

[pollywog]

I don't think he'd throw everything he had at Wilder and leave him staggering back to his corner on the bell. He'd have to be pretty ****ing precise to know the exact amount of shots Wilder could take without being knocked out.

I don't doubt there's plenty of dodgy stuff in boxing, but I know what I saw. The 'fixing' is done in the matchmaking, not in the ring.

Didn't the ref give Wilder extra time to recover ? What does that imply ?

If you wanted to prove you could have smashed the sh.!t out of a guy you're paid to lose to before taking the dive you would.

Just like Helenius in the first round when Wilder "annihilated" him. He had Wilder backed up and scared, nek minnit, Big Bob was spazzing out like drunken a break dancer.

[Boro]

But...

They were mandatories (well one was a late replacement mandatory). Joshua had to fight them or drop his belts.

Chisora was a voluntary. I won't go into Schwarz and Wallin as Fury was free to fight who he wanted as a non title holder. But yes, they were poor opposition.

It's a massive difference.

Boro fan? Bad luck against Villa, by the way. Tough to lose on a late deflection.

Yes Pulev, Takam, Schwarz and Wallin were all poor opposition that's my point as is Ngannou but some reason it's spun now that AJ has/is fighting them, they're "real" opposition which is why I find the whole charade a farce.

No i'm not a Boro fan, I was just born there and despite it being a shíthole I'm happy to represent my little rinky dink town, in my own lil way, I hate football tbh, so it's defo not related to that.

[Tom Joad]

He didnt take a dive. He quit on his stool. At least A-Side had the decency to stand in his corner and quit against Ruiz.

That counts for heaps...lol

I use the term in its general meaning of deliberately losing. It was pathetic. A golden glove sub novice (do they still have them?) could have done better. At least he would have tried to throw a punch. The thing is I know what Wallin can do. He was a live underdog in that fight, 4 to 1 odds. He wasn't a jobber like Di Mori in the Hrgovic fight with 50 or 100 to 1 odds who everyone knew was only there to lose. That was supposed to be the main event of the evening. Boxing is so crooked.

[Toffee]

Didn't the ref give Wilder extra time to recover ? What does that imply ?

If you wanted to prove you could have smashed the sh.!t out of a guy you're paid to lose to before taking the dive you would.

Just like Helenius in the first round when Wilder "annihilated" him. He had Wilder backed up and scared, nek minnit, Big Bob was spazzing out like drunken a break dancer.

It implies that Wilder was looked after by the powers that be, not that Ortiz took a dive.