Topic: [ BOXING POLL ADDED ] The Rematch - JOSHUA vs USYK II (updated thread) - page 12. (Read 3469 times)

You are right, Usyk is the better fighter far more technical than Joshua and definitely far more experienced too. Based on the first fight and the history of the two fighters I think the rematch will not end in a satisfactory manner for Joshua.

If he loses what happens to his career? If he wins, he will seek a financial blockbuster fight with Fury. This is probably make or break for Joshua as far as his career is concerned.

The circumstances need to be taken into account and when we do it is easy to realize things are completely different now, on the first Joshua vs Ruiz fight, Joshua was too heavy, made many strategic mistakes, did not train himself specifically against Ruiz and Ruiz got a lucky punch, the second fight was easily won by Joshua by eliminating his mistakes and Ruiz showing with a lot more weight which denied his best asset, which was his speed of hands.

Usyk is a completely different boxer, he is by far the most technical fighter out of the two, Joshua will need a lucky punch or a cut on the eye of Usyk to level the playing field, and even then I doubt he can get the win.

Has Usyk ever been floored, even when he was Cruiserweight champion?

Sure without doubt if heavy punchers and hard hitters such as Fury, Wilder and Joshua hit Usyk with a ferocious hit then he will be floored but Wilder floored Fury several times even though Fury floored Wilder even more before beating him twice (I would say 3 times because the first fight was a dubious "draw" by the judges when Fury clearly won).

That remains the only real way Joshua could win against Usyk, the ferocious one punch but you hit the nail on the head - why has Joshua been trigger shy on pulling that powerful right punch ever since he met Ruiz for their first fight? Something does not add up because he was not even going for it against Usyk instead he wanted to trade jabs because he had success with it against Ruiz II but completely failed him against Usyk. Just as you, I also saw no game-plan from Joshua in that fight.

Just because he beat Ruiz II he became overconfident again and asked to fight Fury but that was his downfall. Now his whole career teeters on the brink of the Usyk rematch.

Yeah, it was a completely different fight. Ruiz looked like he gained quite a few pounds on the night, and also didn't look motivated at all. Plus, Joshua while he did box quite well, avoided any fire fights, and to be honest I think Ruiz has ruined Joshua's confidence in those tight spaces, which actually resulted in Joshua losing against Usyk.

Joshua has always been a fun fighter to watch, not because of his technique or his technical ability at all. We watch Joshua because he always has a chance to knock someone out, and the majority of the time does just that. Now, he looks reluctant, and I'm not even sure what his game plan was, since he walked into that ring, and tried to outbox a boxer he knows is much more technical than him.

The thing is I'm not convinced that Usyk is a heavy puncher at least not compared to the rest of the division, so I think if he can regain that confidence, and risk it like he did against Ruiz in the first fight, he'll end up knocking out Usyk. However, if he approaches it with the idea of showing off his technical ability, he'll get out pointed once again.

I really think that Joshua has to think very well how he will face USYK, although many say that in boxing the strongest, the fastest, or the one who resists the most and has the best physical conditions wins, very few understand that he Boxing is a sport that has to put a lot of intelligence into it, I have practiced boxing and I have had boxing fights, and clearly you can have the best training, but in the middle of the fight there comes a time when the mind goes blank and you don't know what to do, or where to attack or how to attack, that is why a very good strategy must be made taking advantage of Joshua's physique to take advantage of it, if Joshua fights intelligently if he can beat USYK.

I see no reason to give Joshua any benefit because Usyk is technically the better boxer, it is unfair to compare the Ruiz rematch with any potential Usyk rematch because yes it is true Joshua dominated Ruiz and won on points in the rematch but Ruiz was overconfident and overweight going in to the fight already having beaten Joshua and did not fully train - as he admitted later.

Usyk will not lower his standards for the rematch so it will be almost impossible for Joshua to win which means the end of his boxing career. Joshua has the power and physique to beat any fighter but he simply does not have the skills to do it. Wilder, Usyk and Fury are all technically superior to Joshua so it will take a miracle for him to beat Usyk.

Joshua's assignment is the hardest in his career the guy Usyk totally dominated him in their first meeting the kind of domination that takes out everything Joshua has, he needs a different approach now, change his strategy and this time should be the one to dominate Usyk, he should win by knock out or by unanimous decision a split decision will give both of them a third match and Joshua could be in trouble again.

It's the same situation Joshua faced when he was about to face Ruiz people are thinking that he if is beaten it's over for him but he gave us a big surprise by fully dominating Ruiz, let's give him a benefit of the doubt that he can come out with a big surprise again this time against Usyk, if he loses again he will have to take a long rest, losing to the same guy twice can take a toll on you and you'll lose your legacy.

The only way Joshua will win the fight is if Usyk is having a bad at the office otherwise it will be another loss for Joshua. There is no denying Joshua has the power and the physique to win the fight but there is also no denying that Joshua does not have the skills to regularly beat top fighters. If Usyk does step up and fight even better in the rematch then Joshua will probably be pushed in to retirement.

What i like about Floyd Mayweather is that, he is willing to train fighters, he was open to train Deontay Wilder for his rematch against Tyson Fury but Deontay Wilder turned down the offer and started talking against Floyd Mayweather and now he is willing to train Joshua, i hope he will be open to that offer as i consider Floyd Mayweather to be the best defensive boxer ever and he could improve their skills.

Lets see what strategy is going to prepare for the rematch, i am still rooting for Usyk to win as he is a much better fighter/

Maybe entering the picture and telling Joshua he can train him for the Usyk rematch,


https://www.boxingscene.com/mayweather-open-helping-joshua-prepare-usyk-rematch--162535

Not sure though if this is a good idea, I think Joshua should really get someone that can really train him with a lot of experience. There has been no reports yet who is going to replace his old trainer Rob McCracken.

But I do agree that Joshua strategy will be different in the rematch, he can't just stand there and chase Usyk.

If Usyk wins then there is not going to be any need for a trilogy as we will know who is the best out of the two, if anything while I love the idea of a second fight coming I do not need it to know which one is the best boxer out of the two either, Usyk is far ahead of Joshua, and if anything I think Usyk will be even better in the second fight as he will have more time to train and improve his speed and power in the division, and once he beats Joshua again there is not going to be anyone between Usyk and Fury to see who will become the undisputed champion.

Agree with you, it would not be the same with his fight with Ruiz as USYK clearly dominated him in that fight. It was a unanimous decision win by him as he clearly outboxed Joshua in that fight, so there's no way Joshua could beat Ruiz unless he will completely change his style which is unlikely to happen.

Usyk is willing to take it even in a trilogy as he is very confident he will win, not only that, this is also a big fight which means big money.

Somehow I have a feeling, that the result and strategy of both fighters wont change much in their second fight. Joshua will still rely on his power, Usyk will still rely on his speed and huge number of punches (points). They will either go to score cards or Joshua would connect one good punch, and then finish dazed opponent. I just dont see what Joshua could dramatically change to turn the fight 180 degrees. 22/24 of his fights ended with KO in first half of the fight. I dont believe that his will change his tactics and tries to win by points and land more punches or do long combinations.

Some boxers do have that, therefore they need to adjust by being smart not to get hit, besides, that's the main goal when they are training, hit the opponent and not allow to get hit so you'll win. Joshua does not only have a soft chin, he does not also know how to manage his advantage, he think he could rely on his power to finish the fight, but he was already wrong two times, so it's time for him to reclaim himself.

Not really arguing against that, I remember looking at him and he looked more like a body builder than a boxer, this means that his stamina was drained too quickly and he was unable to fight properly on the later rounds, which is what we saw during the fight against Ruiz, so I do not disagree with your argument all all, I am just saying that what put Joshua in a bad condition was a lucky punch by Ruiz when Joshua was going for the KO, unfortunately for Joshua he does not have a strong chin which is a terrible flaw for a boxer on the heavyweight division to have.

I would disagree with both of you Joshua lost in the first fight against Ruiz because he was in heaviest form. He has never been so heavy and during the fight he felt discomfort. He was 4.5kg heavier than he was in their fight. Also, if we put aside that punch, which you called lucky, Ruiz was leading on the cards before stoppage. If they continue to fight like this, Ruiz would have won by split decision with 4 points advantage. Their fight showed that Joshua take punches badly. He needs a lot of time to recover.

This fight turned out good with Usyk winning their fight on their first match via unanimous decision that lead him to win three titles which are WBO, WBA, and IBF. However, the two fighters can't move forward with another match because they are bound in their contract to have a rematch which is very okay with the side of Usyk. In fact, his promoter was very much agreed with it because it means more money and exposure. In addition, Usyk was confident enough to beat Joshua once again. He said it's in his favor because he would get to beat Josua the second time around. Their fight is assumed to be held in the early part of 2022, which probably would be around the late dates of March or early dates of April.

Joshua, as stated by his promoter would undergo training and more practice to enhance his playing style against Usyk. He said in an interview that he learned his lesson well and he would take the defeat as a chance to make himself fight and throw punches even better. He even claimed that Usyk's only advantage is being light and fast-paced, which lead him to win their previous match. Joshua mentioned in an interview to beat and get back the titles from Usyk once their rematch has begun. The rematch is going to be held at the same venue which is Ukraine despite Usyk being hopeful he would bring the upcoming big fight on his career to his hometown. Hopefully, we would witness another great battle once again. This fight would determine their next step in their career, whether they could fight with their supposedly next match once they bring home the titles.

And I will have to disagree, it was a lucky punch, until the third round Joshua was dominating the fight against Ruiz and he even got Ruiz down, Joshua was trying to give a good impression to the US public because if I remember correctly Wilder had fought the previous week and won as he always did with a spectacular KO, so Joshua went for the KO against Ruiz to get a fast win only to be surprised by a punch behind the ear that left him in a bad condition during the rest of the fight.

No problem if the fight are going to be held in UK though, I guess it make sense as more UK fans are going to be interested to see their hero one last time (if he losses again to Usyk).

And I read that Joshua hasn't finalized yet on the trainer that he is going to select and he is going back to the States again second time to maybe pick the one that will fit his needs.