Is AJ the new Wlad Klit?

As for the broader Wladimir Klitschko comparisons ....

we saw a 38 year old Klitschko destroy a prime 33 year old Pulev quicker than a prime 31 year old Joshua destroyed a 39 year old Pulev.

 

We also didn't see Pulev turn his back and cower in fear from Klitschko like he did against Joshua in that third round. Im not knocking Pulev for doing that , its just what happened.
To turn your back and walk away from combat like that is against the rules.. Pulev was lucky the ref didn't end the fight there and then.

Another compassion to note is performances.. Wlad didn't outbox Pulev like AJ did.. He assaulted him over and over with clinches and caught him off guard on the breaks. He fought ugly and unsportsmanlike.
He then used a spongy ring canvas so he wouldn't have to deal with Pulevs awkward in and out movement.

Joshua beat Pulev fairly , Wlad had to rely on cheating.

And what about the 12 month lay off? Joshua was ring rusty and not as sharp as he used to be

This content is protected

 

Some things never change around here.

 

At the moment, sort of.

I think Joshua has a much better chin than Wlad, though not quite as big a puncher. Wlad was way more skilled though

His problems were less a bad chin and more an issue of being reckless and overeager, so I think he can get the balance a bit more to the entertaining side. At the moment he seems to be erring on the cautious, which you can't blame him for.

 

Of course Pulev never had nor power nor hands speed that Ruiz does have. Not even close. Bonuse he now is 39 y.o, looks comfortable.

He doesn't have limited power.
Definitely he is leg lazy ( maybe most leg lazy from all top 15 HW boxers ) and with short reach.
This had been properly exploited in rematch. keep distance, move and use reach advantage.

 

Poor mans wlad

Fury will dominate this tentative fighter

 

AJ throws a pretty good uppercut. When Wlad threw the uppercut he punched his own face

This content is protected

 

He did go for the kill. That third round took a lot out of him and that's why the next few rounds he took the foot off the pedal.

 

Yes, there are signs that he is going in that direction. But Lewis might be a better comparison, since he's still a bit from being as one-track as a mature Wlad was.

He'll probably need to get back more to the old AJ against Fury, though. If he's patient behind a jab, Fury will likely steal the fight with potshots much as he did against Wlad.

 

AJ uses tactics and clean boxing to wear his down opponent .. Wlad used excessive use of illegal clinching and leaning.
You won't see AJ or anybody else lead with clinches and use bear hugs as an offensive tactic. Wlad is done and gone.. There won't be a other disgrace like him to tarnish the division..

The closet guy in style to Wlad is Lawrence Okoile.

 

True.

But imagine what would have been said of Joshua's chin if Pulev had rocked him with a jab like he rocked Wlad with one.

 

Good post. AJ definitely has weaknesses (who doesn't), but I think the glass tends to be judged a bit half full, as unfortunately often is the case with active fighters.

I think he has the best punch variety and combos for such a big man since Bowe and he's a top finisher. He keeps his chin a bit high and his left a bit low but otherwise he's pretty good defensively for such a big guy. The chin... He took Wlad's best without being stopped and not many can say that, so it can't be all that bad. Yes, he never recovered from that first KD to Ruiz which was a bit odd, but I suppose we will see further on how much that was a one off or not.

There's a lot of talk about him gassing, but again we're down to basically the Ruiz loss where that might have been an issue. But I don't know how much stamina had to with him just never getting his legs back under him after that KD. I mean, he recovered against Whyte and Wlad (bigger punchers both probably), so time will tell how much Ruiz was a one off.

I'd also add in his favour that he's only faced ranked fighters in the last four or so years (well, Takam was perhaps just outside the top 10 but he was also an alternate for a ranked opponent). He's looking to face the best, and for such fighters I will always be more forgiving when they come up short or doesn't overly impress.

 

you may be right....
this is precisely why an exciting American fighter like Deontay Wilder will always steal the hearts and minds of the fans, no matter how limited he may be skill wise or how 'padded' the record might be.
let's face it, at the end of the day it's a fight. people want excitement in the HWs.

 

He has made a fairly similar change, it's a very sensible adjustment for a fighter to make as he enters his 30s and inevitably starts to slow down a bit.