By Allan Fox: Fans are all over the place as to whether Anthony Joshua should return to the ring to challenge WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury in November or December.
It’s certainly a risky fight for former two-division world champion Joshua (24-3, 22 KOs), given that he has lost three of his last five fights, and would arguably face the best heavyweight around. in the world in Fury.
The bigger question is whether Joshua’s back-to-back losses against Oleksandr Usyk have degraded his self-confidence. If not, this is a fight worth taking.
Joshua probably doesn’t need any additional time with his new trainer, Robert Garcia, because he’s as good as he’ll ever be under his watch. For Joshua to beat Fury, he possesses enough boxing skills to get the job done because of what he showed in his recent fight against Usyk.
If Joshua stays out and uses his powerful jab, he has a very good chance of beating Fury because the ‘Gypsy King’ doesn’t have the same strong jab and his hand speed isn’t as good.
Fury’s game is a mewing style that involves him holding, leaning, grabbing, and throwing lots of punches at point-blank range. It would be wrong for Joshua to try to fight Fury on the inside because he would wear him down.
“Anthony Joshua’s loss last month to Oleksandr Usyk seemed to end any chance of a fight between Joshua and Tyson Fury. However, with Usyk sidelined until next year, Fury called Joshua up for a fight in December,” Chris Mannix told DAZN JABS.
“Joshua has accepted the fight at least on social media, and Fury promoter Frank Warren says there has been some preliminary talk about staging the fight. Sergio, is it a good idea or a bad idea for AJ to fight Fury before the end of the year? Mannix said.
“It’s a great idea. I love this idea of ’El Rey Gitano,’ and he’s doing what he does best outside of the ring, which is being a promoter,” Sergio Mora said. “He promotes himself. social networks; he tells you what he wants, he tells you what he is going to do, and he does it.
“He is a man of his word. I love the fact that he goes for Joshua in the world. Not just in the UK in England, but in the world. Two big men and we couldn’t see them for the undisputed championship with all the belts on the line.
“It’s still a fight that people want to see, and it’s still a fight that’s more popular than Usyk, although that would be for the undisputed. It’s just the way it is. Usyk is a nightmare for any heavyweight.
“Joshua, on the other hand, is a dream come true for anyone in the heavyweight division,” Mora said.
“Yeah, I think it’s a bad idea, and I think it’s a bad idea for two reasons,” Mannix said of the idea of Joshua fighting Fury in December. “One, I don’t think Anthony Joshua right now is anywhere near his best.
“I think he has a confidence problem as a boxer, having lost two in a row to Oleksander Usyk, and I think he needs more time with his new coaching staff, whether Robert Garcia continues as his trainer or they hire someone else. to congratulate Ángel Fernández.
“I think he needs more time with the people in his corner, so I think he should follow the plan that I have laid out earlier. Something like a Dave Allen-type fight in December, something like a Dillian Whyte-type fight in the first quarter of 2023, and then see where he is.
“On top of that, while there is a lot of money in a fight between Joshua and Fury right now, don’t you think there’s a lot more money if Joshua rehabs himself with two or three wins and Fury continues to fight for the title? undisputed championship in the first quarter or 2023?
“Joshua vs. Fury for the undisputed title in the second half of next year. That’s a big money fight, whether it’s in the UK, the Middle East or anywhere in the world.
“Look, if Fury wants to go on and fight some kind of fight to keep himself busy, look at Derek Chisora. He wants the fight. He’s probably not going to put a price on himself. That’s a big fight in the UK. Fury would win that one pretty easily.
“I think you put off a Joshua fight as long as you can to make the most money six or eight months from now,” Mannix said.
“You are completely crazy,” Mora said. “Wait that for another Andy Ruiz who could come in and knock Joshua out? No. Tyson Fury could slip on a banana peel and get injured and either sit out or lose to Usyk.
“No, these are things you don’t expect. Don’t let them marinate. You don’t go out and hope for the best. You make it happen while it’s still hot.
“Tyson is the biggest and most popular champion in the world. He is the heavyweight champion and has the WBC belt. Joshua, on the other hand, is a two-time champion and still popular; he is still the man. If you put him in front of a billboard and people are going to know who he is.
“They’re going to want to buy that pay-per-view. The sale of the promotion of that will be incredible. I agree. Make it happen now. They don’t need to go elsewhere.
“This is the time to make it happen because if you don’t make it now, it will never happen. We’ll never get the fight we really want to see. I totally agree,” Mora said.
“That’s where you’re wrong, saying it’s never going to happen. Of course, it’s going to happen,” Mannix said. “Fury has been in and out of retirement about half a dozen times in the last six months.
“Now, he’s talking about fighting multiple people in 2023. He recently said that if Deontay Wilder beats Andy Ruiz, ‘I guess I’ll fight Deontay Wilder a fourth time to defend that WBC title.’
“I like that your arguments against Fury: Joshua to wait a little longer is that Fury could slip on a banana peel. That’s absurd. In theory, Oleksandr Usyk could beat Fury, but he will be a heavy favorite in that fight.
“He is going to have so many physical tools available to him in that fight. Just think how massive that fight against Joshua would be if Joshua had a couple of wins under his belt.
“Get some of that momentum back, get some experience with that trainer, and Fury wins the undisputed championship. That’s a massive fight, not two years from now, but 10 months from now, in September of next year,” Mannix said.
“You are living in a fairy tale world. This is boxing, the damage business, and everything can change in one fell swoop,” Mora said. “Joshua, we know how vulnerable you are.
“You said psychologically; sometimes it has, sometimes it doesn’t. She is juggling slippers here and there. He is training all over the place,” Mora said.
“That’s why you don’t put him up against someone real,” Mannix said.
“That’s why you charge and you get it while the getting is good,” Mora said. “Joshua, even though he lost, put up a good fight in a valiant effort.
“Now, let’s go from that to Tyson Fury, the biggest fight in the world, aside from Crawford-Spence, that’s never going to happen. Give me Fury-Joshua,” Mora said.
“Where was this argument when he was pushing for Ryan Garcia to take on Tank Davis?” Mannix said. “Where was I, ‘Make the fight now while it can be done?’ Where was this?
“That is very different. Are you talking about a 23 year old with problems outside the ring? Mora said.
“An undefeated young man,” Mannix said.
“It’s different. We’re talking about a grown man. [Joshua] in his 30 years he has already been to the top several times,” said Mora. “It’s a totally different story.”
