You cant train a chin, you either have one or you don’t. When the going gets tough AJ cannot rely on his chin as evidenced clearly this weekend.... When you almost get counted out against a washed up shot grey haired glass chinned WK who had not won a fight in several years anyone with a brain knows the gig is up. His handlers knew that he is packing glass and that is the reason they avoided Wilder at all costs. If that fight materializes , and that is a big if because AJ has to grow a set first, Wilder will sp[ark him quicker and more decisive than Ruiz, you can bank on it.
Most certainly, the damage that he took In there is in many ways worse than just one clean K.O. It was a total beatdown and remains to be seen how much it's taken out of him. Wouldn't surprise me if he freezes again and gets floored the next time Ruiz or who ever lands anything of substance on his head at the first opportunity. Image if Wilder connects, even at half his max power!
All in all, I wouldn't be shocked if Joshua announces retirement (or maybe a long pause). After all, Wlad also intended to rematch AJ, was training for the rematch but then thought it over and decided to call it a day.
Exactly what I think. AJ probably knows that now but has to play the game to keep his endorsements happy.
Its certainly not good if true. Even if its not the amount of times AJ is getting hurt/dropped is worrying. History shows once you start to get dropped it only gets worse not better. I always find it quite sad when you get a "chinny" fighter. Plenty of really talented guys over the years have gone the "chinny" route That said if he had gone in again ruiz like he did parker he would have probably won. If you aint got a chin then you at least need to keep your hands up at all times not be jabbing from the hip, it was a really poor showing.
AJ got beat. End of story. Ruiz was the better man that night. All this talk about the camp being in Miami, the friends at his camp, getting knocked out in camp, etc.. are lame excuses. People just can't accept the fact that maybe AJ isn't that good.
It's not as simple as that. He doesn't have the intelligence to take on board instructions and alter his style. He's not a young prospect anymore, he's nearly 30. All those bad habits are ingrained in him.. He already has Wlad, the very man himself giving him pointers in training and what good has it served so far? Did Khan iron out his flaws when he ditched and blamed Roach for his failings in favor of Virgil Hunter? Wladmir went under the stewardship of Manny when he was still young and was easily adaptable to taking on the adjustments which Manny required of him. You forget that his IQ is a thousand times higher than that of a generic meathead such as Joshua, so when in the ring he could intuitively figure things out for himself.
Looks like I was right. Joshua did indeed **** his pants and required a pep talk from hearn to convince him to get in the ring. What a coward of a plastic champion. Can you imagine Tyson, Ali or Wladmir needing to be talked into entering the ring on fight night by their promoter? Those belts should never have been around his waist in the first place. It's a blessing they've now been relieved from him.
This sums it up: winners adjust. Plenty of guys have achieved world championships and been effective at world class without world-class chins ... but they have to adjust their styles to take that into account. They have to box with that in mind and have the mental and physical discipline to not forget their weakness for even a short portion of a single round lest it happen again. AJ didn’t learn his lessons. We’ll see if he does now, but it’s not like this is new.
Eddie Hearn is a snake. I think there should be strong legal reprecautions against Eddie Hearn and Slave room boxing. Everyone who saw the fight noticed Anthony Joshua was not right when he got into the ring. How can you force a concussed boxer into a fight with a stylistic nightmare even after suffering a panic attack before his ring walk. Unreal, very shortsighted and selfish from Hearn