Comments Thread For: As Daniel Dubois closes in on rematch with Oleksandr Usyk what does that mean for Joseph Parker and the rest of the contenders?

[NihonJim]

If we have to have this rematch, please for the love of God Dubois go in there to have a fight, seriously the last 4 or 5 Usyk fights has been slower clunky heavyweights trying to fiddle around and beat Usyk in a chess match, it's boring.

There's no way Dubois outboxes Usyk so he might as well go in and just go he'll for leather for 3 rounds and try and blast him out, that approach can work vs cerebral counter punchers, catch them early.

It won't happen though the first bell will ring and Dubois will shuffle to the center of the ring, try and jockey for lead hand position and match Usyk jab for jab, we all know he will....

[Bob]

wilder avoided joshua thats just a fact. 100 million dollar offer turned down. wilder confirms this. not sure how you can be avoiding someone if you massively try to overpay him and yes they tried to massively overpay him, wilder got a pittance of that instead for his next fights which proves it was an overpay. you can say joshua su-cked and was a bum or whatever but why pretend he avoided wilder when it was wilder who avoided him

Lies! Of a fanboy. If you knew your facts that was in 2019 & Aj wasn't in the dazn contract but let's agree Wilder turned that 100 mill dazn offer down & the dazn boss even said we got the offer wrong. Facts.

A YEAR BEFORE In 2018 with the world wanting undesputed Aj had all the money & power. Edward famously sent Wilder 3 low balls & Wilder accepted the 14 mill offer to call they're bluff, then Wilder offered Aj a proven 50 mill flat fee but they scurried off to continue they're shot old man tour with 39 yr old pov.

At the same time Aj in a sky tv interview with Johnny Nelson said "i won't be rushed into the Wilder fight" when asked when he said "19 20 21" Hearn then in a separate interview said" 2020 & maybe he'll (wilder) loose by then".

I suppose your going to tell me Aj didn't send back the Fury contract demanding commercial control & Aside status.... Again proven & why we got Fury Chisora.

Mic drop.

[landotter]

Shlt , I'm dizzy now.

Yeah.. I got nothin' on any of that. All I got was "Usyk-DuBois" and the rest seems like the haze you have the morning after. What are we up to, like somewhere between 6 and 8 HW titles of some kind? Wasn't it a big deal like just a few years ago the sanctioning bodies were going to eliminate all of that?

Since when did just being declared a simple to understand #1 contender not enough?

[billeau2]

I don't know about that, bro. At the time, there was an aura of confidence in both Joshua and Wilder, that I believe would have made for a great fight. Joshua only had the one loss vs Ruiz, which he avenged. Andy wasn't the physical specimen that Anthony was, which made some people astounded (AJ included) at how he beat the muscle-bound fighter. But Ruiz is no slouch. He has fast hands and can bang. Nearly all of Wilder's opponents before Fury were smaller than him, yet there were times when he was outboxed. That right hand saved him from some losses which is extraordinary, but that's all he had. Joshua is more skilled and very powerful too.

I definitely concur on Ruiz I have been a fan from way back, but Joshua did not seem to me to have the mental ability to fight Wilder. Yes Wilder was outboxed, Ortiz outboxed him among others, but that punch was a game changer and I believe when Joshua would have felt it that would be it. Joshuas problem was never his skills it was always his mental state.

[billeau2]

Lies! Of a fanboy. If you knew your facts that was in 2019 & Aj wasn't in the dazn contract but let's agree Wilder turned that 100 mill dazn offer down & the dazn boss even said we got the offer wrong. Facts.

A YEAR BEFORE In 2018 with the world wanting undesputed Aj had all the money & power. Edward famously sent Wilder 3 low balls & Wilder accepted the 14 mill offer to call they're bluff, then Wilder offered Aj a proven 50 mill flat fee but they scurried off to continue they're shot old man tour with 39 yr old pov.

At the same time Aj in a sky tv interview with Johnny Nelson said "i won't be rushed into the Wilder fight" when asked when he said "19 20 21" Hearn then in a separate interview said" 2020 & maybe he'll (wilder) loose by then".

I suppose your going to tell me Aj didn't send back the Fury contract demanding commercial control & Aside status.... Again proven & why we got Fury Chisora.

Mic drop.

Joshuastans are all so smart, they even know when fighters are ducking, because fast Eddy and Satanic Bobby Arum tell em! Most boxing fans understand fighters and can understand that negotiations are complex things that do not involve fighters ducking, but not Joshuastans! Joshua made Wilder and the rest duck! And the same pool of alphabet soup champions that everyone fought? Well some of them were "ranked" see? meaning that even though it is the same pool of fighters, Joshua fought Better competition! LOl. You cannot make this shiat up Well maybe Duggum can.

[RingoKid]

Parker does not have the skill level, brute strength or power of Anthony Joshua'.

Brute strength and power are overrated.

Parker has superior skills, higher ring IQ and better recuperation after a knockdown.

[SUBZER0ED]

I definitely concur on Ruiz I have been a fan from way back, but Joshua did not seem to me to have the mental ability to fight Wilder. Yes Wilder was outboxed, Ortiz outboxed him among others, but that punch was a game changer and I believe when Joshua would have felt it that would be it. Joshuas problem was never his skills it was always his mental state.

I'm not sure if you're suggesting Joshua is mentally weak or what. I don't believe he's mentally weak. I think he underestimated Ruiz and muddled his style trying to figure out the master technician Usyk. I also think Dubois surprised him with how fast he started and his determination to get the win in poignant fashion. Again, I think when the interest was high in a Joshua vs Wilder fight, AJ had the tools to win. Wilder had one tool to win. Speaking of lacking mental fortitude, notice how Wilder accused everyone and their mother of foul play when Fury KO'd him the first time.

[RingoKid]

I don't believe he's mentally weak.

Speaking of lacking mental fortitude, notice how Wilder accused everyone and their mother of foul play when Fury KO'd him the first time.

Post Usyk loss...

Joshua began by throwing two of Usyk's belts out of the ring saying...

"I don't care about strong, I have to have skills. Being strong doesn't win boxing, skills win boxing. You're not strong, how did you beat me? How? Because of skill.
I had character and determination."

...and he later broke down in tears at the post-fight press conference.

Sounds like mentally weak and lacking in fortitude to me.

[billeau2]

I'm not sure if you're suggesting Joshua is mentally weak or what. I don't believe he's mentally weak. I think he underestimated Ruiz and muddled his style trying to figure out the master technician Usyk. I also think Dubois surprised him with how fast he started and his determination to get the win in poignant fashion. Again, I think when the interest was high in a Joshua vs Wilder fight, AJ had the tools to win. Wilder had one tool to win. Speaking of lacking mental fortitude, notice how Wilder accused everyone and their mother of foul play when Fury KO'd him the first time.

Joshua stops fighting at times. I mean he doesn't throw in a towel but you see a mental process of quit take over. Is it weakness? Yeah I would say one could call it that. Guys like Wilder thrive on that reaction. Boxing is an interesting sport, levels to the game right? Take a man with "one weapon" as you call it who can be avoided in the ring. Someone like David Tua who did not have much reach, his footwork was slow. So Lewis used his jab to just avoid any inkling of a left hook.

BUT, other times? that "One weapon" when employed in the right circumstances can wipe out an otherwise talented fighter with many weapons. Joshua has always had talent, much like Frank Bruno. Both men had a certain vulnerability though. Witherspoon was out techniqued by Bruno but when he caught Bruno? that was it. Joshua is the same way. There is just something missing, something that creates the mental toughness to deal with fighters like Wilder.

Mental fortitude? No... Never accused any fighter of lacking conviction, I am strictly referring to a quality of toughness that makes some guys extra special. For example, watch when Jimmy Young gets lit up by George Foreman. He comes back harder, he wants to show George he will not wilt, or, our boy Andy Ruiz. When he was initially dropped by joshua the first fight... His attitude was to get up and be even more determined. Joshua does not do that. Frank Bruno was not able to do that. At least from where I am sitting that is how it looks.

[SUBZER0ED]

Joshua stops fighting at times. I mean he doesn't throw in a towel but you see a mental process of quit take over. Is it weakness? Yeah I would say one could call it that. Guys like Wilder thrive on that reaction. Boxing is an interesting sport, levels to the game right? Take a man with "one weapon" as you call it who can be avoided in the ring. Someone like David Tua who did not have much reach, his footwork was slow. So Lewis used his jab to just avoid any inkling of a left hook.

BUT, other times? that "One weapon" when employed in the right circumstances can wipe out an otherwise talented fighter with many weapons. Joshua has always had talent, much like Frank Bruno. Both men had a certain vulnerability though. Witherspoon was out techniqued by Bruno but when he caught Bruno? that was it. Joshua is the same way. There is just something missing, something that creates the mental toughness to deal with fighters like Wilder.

Mental fortitude? No... Never accused any fighter of lacking conviction, I am strictly referring to a quality of toughness that makes some guys extra special. For example, watch when Jimmy Young gets lit up by George Foreman. He comes back harder, he wants to show George he will not wilt, or, our boy Andy Ruiz. When he was initially dropped by joshua the first fight... His attitude was to get up and be even more determined. Joshua does not do that. Frank Bruno was not able to do that. At least from where I am sitting that is how it looks.

I think I see your point now. Though Joshua did show grit and determination after Wlad dropped him, he hasn't really shown it during other times of adversity. He did begin to attack Dubois right before he got KO'd and even hurt him, but by then, it was more out of desperation and AJ was already hurt himself from being dropped twice. The Bruno fight that absolutely disgusted me was VS Tyson 2. I mean, Frank was all pumped up and projecting that he'd KO Mike, then he proceeded to retreat to the ropes and cover up as Tyson attacked and ultimately destroyed him.