Anthony Joshua v Oleksandr Usyk 2

[Master]

ANTHONY JOSHUA could accept an interim bout next with his rematch against Oleksandr Usyk in doubt.

The pair are contracted to a second fight this year following Usyk's 12-round upset at Tottenham last September.

But the unbeaten two-weight champion is currently defending Ukraine amid the invasion of Vladimir Putin's Russia.

Promoter Eddie Hearn revealed finding a tune-up opponent for Joshua, 32, is not out of the question if Usyk, 34, is otherwise out of the picture.

So here SunSport runs down six candidates suitable for the job.

Otto Wallin
If AJ is to stay busy he will likely be scouting for a southpaw opponent to help him best prepare for Usyk.

Wallin's profile is big enough to help Joshua sell tickets and pay-per-views - after he gave Tyson Fury 47 stitches in 2019.


He was deemed a low-enough risk for Dillian Whyte, 33, to face last October while the Brit already had a guaranteed shot at Fury, 33.

And although it fell through, Joshua has formerly sparred and boxed lefty Wallin in the amateurs, giving him enough knowledge of the Swede.

Luis Ortiz
The Cuban was once the most feared southpaw in the division, but two losses to Deontay Wilder appear to have taken its toll.

Ortiz, now 42, most recently beat Charles Martin, 35, in January but had to pick himself off the canvas to do so.

He still has massive name value and has an equally tricky style to Usyk.

Joshua came close to fighting Ortiz in 2019 but the contender instead opted to chase a rematch with Wilder.

Zhilei Zhang
At 6ft 6in, the Chinese heavyweight does not cut the same frame as Usyk but is at least a southpaw.

He is also signed to Eddie Hearn's Matchroom Boxing stable, making negotiations easier.

Not only that, Joshua has history with Zhang dating back to their amateur days, winning in the quarter-finals of the 2012 London Olympics.

Zhang, 38, is unbeaten as a professional but in February 2021 drew to Jerry Forrest, giving AJ the confidence the task would not be too risky.

Jerry Forrest
The aforementioned American is the most under the radar of the lot but would certainly offer Joshua some valuable southpaw rounds.

Forrest, 33, has lost to contenders such as Jermaine Franklin, 28, and Carlos Takam, 41, in recent years.

But his two most recent fights were draws, against Zhang and then the highly-touted Michael Hunter, 33.

Joshua could expect a tough enough run-out against Forrest, who has only ever been stopped once.

Joseph Parker
The New Zealander is not a southpaw nor low risk, but Joshua has at least responded to Parker's call for a rematch.

AJ, who beat him in 2018, told Behind The Gloves: "I’ll fight Joseph Parker.

"Do you know what it is? My record shows, it's a fight at the end of the day, what do you want me to do?

"I don't give a f***, I'll fight whoever, whenever, it's only a fight. Do you know what I'm trying to say? So yeah, I'll fight, 100 per cent."

Deontay Wilder
The Bronze Bomber is quite possibly the only big fight Joshua and Hearn would consider taking before a rematch with Usyk.

Their history, opposing styles and recent losses makes the clash a box office blockbuster and arguably as big as anything involving Usyk.

The ex-WBC champ at 36 is yet to confirm whether he will retire or not but it appears clear if he returns it will only be for big fights.

AJ and Wilder could se llout just about any stadium or arena worldwide and would be the biggest fight for either of them to take at this point.

https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/17829...ainian-russia/

[Master]

Oleksandr Usyk v Anthony Joshua: Heavyweight champion leaves Ukraine to start training

Heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk has left his native Ukraine to prepare for his rematch with Anthony Joshua.

Usyk, 35, has been helping to defend his country from the Russian invasion after enlisting in Ukraine's military.

He beat Joshua in September to become the unified heavyweight champion and is set to face the Briton again in June.

Usyk will now begin his training camp but, contrary to some reports, the BBC understands the camp is not in neighbouring Poland.

April had initially been mentioned as a potential date for the rematch, but Joshua's search for a new trainer and prolonged talks with WBC champion Tyson Fury forced a delay.

After Joshua decided against stepping aside from the fight to face Fury, his promoter Eddie Hearn said May was a target.

But Joshua's bid to win back the WBA (Super), IBF and WBO belts was pushed back further when Russian troops invaded Ukraine at the end of February.

Usyk is one of several former and current Ukrainian boxers who have come to the defence of their homeland.

Three-weight world champion Vasiliy Lomachenko, 34, has also taken up arms while brothers Vitali and Wladimir Klitschko, both former world heavyweight champions, are also in Kyiv.

Vitali, 50, has been mayor of the city since 2014 while Wladimir, 45, joined the city's military reserve last month.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/boxing/60850530

[Memphis]

From a purely boxing perspective this is great news. I wouldn't have had a problem with Joshua fighting a Wallin, Wilder or Joyce in the interim. But if Usyk is ready, get to work.

[Mark TKO]

surprised he's left Ukraine. Though he'd feel he should stay. Wonder what others who have to remain think.

Then again a Usyk win could give the nation a bit of a lift - albeit in a very very small way when weighed up against whats going on.

[ykdadamaja]

Joshua is a posing model. He will lose to Usyk again becuse Usyk is a real fighter first, and clown second.

[Master]

Joshua v Wilder would have been a fight for the ages when they were both undefeated and champion's unifying the division. They both could not agree and wasted the opportunity and I hope they live to regret that for the rest of their lives.

I would see no value in the fight now unless both were rebuilding after losing their last fights and then both would be damaged goods.

[TitoFan]

Joshua v Wilder would have been a fight for the ages when they were both undefeated and champion's unifying the division. They both could not agree and wasted the opportunity and I hope they live to regret that for the rest of their lives.

I would see no value in the fight now unless both were rebuilding after losing their last fights and then both would be damaged goods.

Suppose Fury retires like he said he was going to. Who else is going to take over the HW division? I don't know.....

I'd still love to watch Wilder and AJ fight.

Too much hype back then, making the fans drool in anticipation.

Maybe this time they wouldn't do so much posturing and just fight.

[Master]

Joshua v Wilder would have been a fight for the ages when they were both undefeated and champion's unifying the division. They both could not agree and wasted the opportunity and I hope they live to regret that for the rest of their lives.

I would see no value in the fight now unless both were rebuilding after losing their last fights and then both would be damaged goods.

Suppose Fury retires like he said he was going to. Who else is going to take over the HW division? I don't know.....

I'd still love to watch Wilder and AJ fight.

Too much hype back then, making the fans drool in anticipation.

Maybe this time they wouldn't do so much posturing and just fight.

They could fight one another but I think that ship has sailed. AJ has to go through Usyk and Fury for the undisputed but if by some miracle he does not get too damaged the last thing he would want to do is take on a huge puncher like Wilder.

I think they will retire before they meet.

Shame, as it has all the ingredients of a classic match-up.

[nuggetdotcom]

Usyk is rightly favoured by the bookies at 4/9, Joshua is 13/8. I would advise all flutterers to keep away from this fight, if Joshua is really such a cash cow that he can generate an $80m fight, AND get half the proceeds as a poor loser of the original fight then something is amiss and anything could happen to prevent Joshua losing.

PS the draw is 22/1

[Kirkland Laing]

Ninety percent of rematches are won by the guy with the better boxing skills. No question who that is. I can see Joshua getting to Plan C by about the sixth and getting stopped in the later rounds.

[Master]

Poll added.

[TitoFan]

I have to go Usyk points. Reviewing highlights from the first fight, AJ has nothing that should bother Usyk this time around.

Usyk showed he takes a pretty good punch, probably better than AJ does. Usyk's side to side style is going to forever bother AJ, who only knows backwards and forward. In fact, it was exiting some of these lateral moves that Usyk tagged Joshua a lot of the times. Joshua may try and press early... but I think his survival instincts will kick in so as to not risk a knockout loss. We saw that in Joshua-Ruiz II, where AJ basically was extremely careful not to engage Ruiz and risk another knockout loss. Joshua's hands are too slow for Usyk, who moves in such a way as to absorb whatever power AJ may have. I'm sure Usyk will be the consummate boxer in the first few rounds of the fight, avoiding possible rushes and flurries from AJ. I was tempted to say Usyk by KO... but I think Usyk knows AJ could land a haymaker and change the whole course of the fight. So I'll stick with Usyk points.

[Master]

Anthony Joshua has changed trainers, tactics and physique ahead of his rematch with Oleksandr Usyk but promoter Frank Warren still believes he has one big flaw that will let him down.

In the first fight between Usyk and Joshua, the Ukrainian put on a boxing masterclass to win by unanimous decision and claim the unified WBA, WBO and IBF heavyweight titles.

Joshua was widely criticised following the loss for his game plan of trying to out-box one of the most technically gifted fighters in the world.

In the rematch, ‘AJ’ insists that he will be changing tacks and using his size and strength advantages to go for the knockout and from recent pictures posted to his Instagram it seems he is packing on the muscle in preparation.

Joshua has also switched out his long-time trainer, Rob McCracken, and replaced him with the dynamic duo of Angel Fernandez and Robert Garcia.

Despite these changes, Frank Warren, who promotes Joshua’s fiercest rival Tyson Fury, is unconvinced that the Brit will be able to get the job done in the rematch.

“I’ve seen all these pictures and photographs of how big Anthony’s got and he’s got a new trainer, so good luck to him, I hope he wins.” Warren told SecondsOut.

“But, I just think Usyk’s got his number and whatever is gonna be is gonna be.

“The big worry is you can train and train and do all of these sorts of things, you can build your body up, but one thing you can’t do is you can’t put muscles on chins.”

This is in reference to the fact that Joshua is often criticised for his lack of punch resistance, stemming from his first fight with Andy Ruiz Jr when the Brit was knocked down four times on his his way to a stoppage defeat.

With that being said, this criticism is relatively unfounded given that Joshua has only been stopped once in 26 professional bouts and outside of the Ruiz Jr fight he has only ever been dropped by Wladimir Klitschko.

This is the heavyweight division, where every fighter has the power to knock their opponent out at any moment and when that is considered, it could be said that ‘AJ’ is actually fairly robust.

https://talksport.com/sport/boxing/1...leksandr-usyk/

[NoSavingByTheBell]

Only hope is to rough him up bad and fast and risk gassing. Use the size and power. But it'll be a tad like Foreman vs Young.

[palmerq]

I'm going with Joshua this time, a bit of a risky bet but he's in a bad way if he loses so I think he'll pull it out of the bag, the guy is monsterously powerful and it'll only take a few good ones to take the life out of usyk.....

I also though Alvarez would beat bivol .