i also like usyk by stoppage. most seen to think joshua's best shot is to be more aggressive and if he is, he gets KOd
I think AJ will start aggressive and have some early success, maybe scoring a flash knockdown or something. Then he will gas and Usyk will adapt and beat him down worse than last time, getting a late stoppage.
I don't think he had a choice to be fair, Usyk had agreed to step aside for Fury-AJ but Wilder won the court case forcing the trilogy fight so AJ had to fulfil the mandatory obligation.
It all depends on how Joshua approaches it. He's capable of winning the rematch. He showed, in a hamfisted way against a little fat cunt, that he can make adjustments to win rematches. His problem is that Usyk is a much better fighter, certainly in a P-4-P sense and in the HW sense, than the little fat cunt and probably Aj himself. Joshua cannot outbox Usyk. He absolutely can't. He's not a good boxer. He's a product of that amateur period in GB boxing between 2005 - 2012ish which produced a raft of amateur champions who thrived on high guards, stiff, robotic point-scoring attacks and headguards and who have mostly fallen flat in the pro ranks. Usyk is far too crafty for Joshua. If AJ comes in and tries to 'box', like he did against the little fat cunt, he will get embarassed and, if Usyk throws caution to the wind )as he started to do late in the first fight), he gets stopped. To win, AJ has to be willing to lose, and lose biggly. He's got a decent jab, good power in the right hand and a very useful uppercut when he throws it. He's a much bigger man than Usyk and he needs to bring that to bear to have a chance. His best chance, probably his only chance, is to take whatever risk is necessary to close the gap, try and pin Usyk down and throw the big right hands. He needs to try and bomb Usyk out. The obvious problem with this approach is that it significantly increases the chance of Usyk countering him silly, draining away those stamina reserves, and brutally stopping him. Usyk probably wins, but the path for AJ is there, if he chooses to risk it all. MTF
Usyk has two key attributes AJ completely lacks- he can fight moving in both directions and he's calm/mentally tough enough to notice things mid fight and adapt. AJ might land a hail mary, especially if he comes out as aggressively as he must know he needs to. But the odds are against it. In fact, if AJ comes out swinging there's more chance it gives Usyk the openings to stop him.
Joshua is one of the worst defensive fighters I've ever seen at 'elite' level. He moves back in straight lines, doesn't move his head at all and leaves his hands down way past his chin. He's a horrible mess going backwards, no doubt about it. MTF
Aye true too but i meant he can't fight moving to his right, either! Its interesting watching Tony Bellew in the early rounds vs Usyk where he gave him problems by more or less giving up his jab & circling right to the inside, just lining up cross counters. Which was often how Hopkins & RJJ fought southpaws &, in inverse, how Usyk spends most time fighting orthodox fighters - circling inside/in the direction of his cross. The main thing being if you can move both ways you arent so totally predictable - AJ can't. It lets Usyk control the geography/centre ring, it makes his plays to the outside position unpredictable and if he gets out there, AJ is basically stuck because he can't go the otherway....whereas on the rare moments AJ gains a dominant outside position for the jab Usyk can more effectively slide back to the inside, out and away. I was screaming at the tele during the Ruiz rematch about this but vs a mobile southpaw it really came to bite him
That will be his undoing IMO, unless he lands early and scores 1-2 KDs, he will unravel when he cant dictate the pace
I think AJ knows what he needs to do, at a fundamental level, to be fair to him. It's just he also knows if he doesn't get an early knockout he doesn't have the gas tank to sustain it. His only chance of victory is that way though so he needs to go balls to the wall and hope for the best.
I think Usyk will stop him late this time. AJ is just too robotic and stiff. To win, AJ needs to catch Usyk cold and bomb him out EARLY. Otherwise, it’s curtains. Usyk via late TKO.
Agreed with all of this, but I'd also add that Joshua actually has a really nice short left hook when he elects to throw it, which he hasn't really done since the Ruiz disaster. I could potentially see him timing one over the Usyk jab but it will only work a couple of times at most before Usyk works it out and neutralises it.
I know it’s a heavyweight fight….but AJ needs to go to the body…like George Foreman used to say hit him in the body, his arms, elbows, heart, neck.
Joshua's best chance is to come in with his jab and look for the backhand more than the uppercut. It was the shot Usyk could read best but the one that hurt him worst, so Joshua should come in with. Can't be predictable with his jab though as it's exactly what almost got him knocked out last time. If he actually snapped it out instead of delicately pawing at Usyk like he was a fucking cat or something. Even if AJ goes to the body I still think it'd likely result in a fight where the tougher, fitter man wins. That's Usyk. Coz as Joshua goes to the body, they'd have an effect on Usyk, but the counters that Joshua would have to eat would take their toll on him much quicker than Joshua's body assault will on Usyk. And that's even if he's got it in him to actually commit to properly to that plan.
Don't think it went unnoticed to Punk. He'll surely be bringing it up when he does your quarterly performance appraisal.
It's Joshua's ONLY Shot... He's NOT Outboxing/Out Finessing Usyk...To WIN the Fight, Joshua Has to IMPOSE Himself Upon Usyk, Actually FIGHT Like the Bigger Man, Even @ the Risk of Being KO'ed... REED
joshua needs to find a way to land his jab. sets everything up for him. i dont see it happening though.