How Anthony Joshua can become the greatest heavyweight of this era

In this scenario AJ would be viewed as the king of the next era. He is not retrocratively becoming king of 2016-2024. When a fighter has a clear 2-0 H2H the losers success helps the winner. Whatever great things AJ does in the next few years will just get Usyk more shine.

In terms of him having a much longer HW resume than Usyk, he has that right now Usyk has beaten 5 opponents. That doesn't erase 2-0 H2H. Usyks lack of a resume is noted but that hurts him more in ATG discussions than relative to AJ. He beat AJ and Fury his status as king is sign, sealed and delivered.

Also AJ has said he'll retire after 2025. Hes not looking for a long reign. Hes looking to win another belt and/or fight Fury and call it a day.

 

Man, the heavyweight future look bleak. Joshua, Wilder, Fury and Usyk all gone in the next 3/4 years?
There is no one to replace them.

 

Well the 70's resume of foreman's Vs Ali's resume is certainly genuinely debatable. As are their total wins ( and manners of the wins with certain fighters they both fought) and losses..hence the 70's being dubbed as the golden age of Heavyweight boxing.

Suffice to say, then. The definite kicker between the two was the Rumble in the Jungle....

 

Hrgovic, Kabayel, Dubois and maybe the younger Miller seem like the beginnings of the next group.

Honestly I'm excited to turn the page. This era kind of felt like you were begging the fighters to fight. Tyson Fury really made you appreciate Wladimir Klitschko and the dull monotony of defending ones title every 6 six months.

 

Yea, I can´t get excited about that at all. Seems like the early 2000s all over again.

 

Please post your Fury-Klitschko scorecard. I would love to see how you have him "eeking out" a "close decision". You're doing the revisionist history calling that fight close.

Yes, Fury ended the Klitschko era. He took out the top dog. Joshua beating a #4 ranked HW in 41 year old Vlad in his own backyard isn't him "taking out the top dogs". He never beat Champion Klitschko, and never beat any of the top champs of his own era. It's a lesson in promotional failure (and a failure to block a counter left hook).

If Hearn and Wilder's camp didn't try to marinate "the fight of the century" then Joshua could have faced one of the top dogs, then Fury could have challenged the winner of that. Instead they over marinated, Joshua got stopped by Ruiz, and the rest is history.

 

Again nowhere there do I say he is the best. Just that Joshua cant be rated higher than someone who beat him definitively twice and retired the undisputed unified champ.

 

That ship has sailed…