Please give your honest thoughts on Joshua Buatsi

Teak tough Ghanaian.

 

I've been a fan of Buatsi for years and really thought he would only lose to Bivol or Beterbiev. He has a style that reminds me of old school American fighters (probably Vergil Hunter's influence). The wins over Hutchinson and Richards were good. But looked like he hit his ceiling last night. Callum Smith is solid - I never rated him that high but he sure looked fresh last night, most people thought he was just turning up for one last paycheck. I think Buatsi could maybe win a rematch, altho I'd rather see Callum Smith fight Benavidez next if Bivol-Beterbiev are tied up with another fight. Buatsi has skills but it's like there's something missing... no killer instinct maybe? Looks like he tires out and can't close the show. Also his power seems to have diminished, he was a bigger puncher in the Olympics and early on in the pros.

 

I was impressed by his toughness and conditioning. His jab was sharp and accurate and I liked his sneaky left hook and he body punches well. Smith was just a machine in there

I think he's a very talented fighter but he would be the underdog vs the big 3 at 175

 

He’s a talented fighter with flashes of brilliance. He’s not consistent with it though. I don’t give him a chance against the big 3 at 175. Wouldn’t mind seeing him fight Yarde or rematch Smith though.

 

Good fighter but our cringe arse media always hype these guys up to be something they aren't.. Buatsi is a solid LHW contender but he won't beat the elite.. that fight last night tho was a fight of the year contender.. they produced something special, so fair play to both of them.. and where the fk did Smith pull that performance from .. it was high class stuff .. nice late career win.

 

Well said.

He needs his own theme music.

 

Physically strong, good chin, excellent fundamentals.

But he's one paced, he struggles to raise his out put when needed too. It's like he had only 1 or 2 gears. So at times it looks like he switches off when his opponent ups the tempo but really he's just unable to respond to the higher pace.

He's only really effective when pressing forward, while he does have a good jab and can out box you from range if you're immobile or give up your height and reach like Smith does, he's not a slickster, defensively savvy or particularly effective on the back foot.

Overall he's pretty one dimensional. We've seen him struggle in fights with guys who dug deep and traded with him and didn't allow him to press forward and fight his type of fight. That inability to adapt to change things up will always be an issue for him at the top level against more versatile fighters or guys who simply are willing to dig deep and be competitive like Smith did.

 

I thought Buatsi would beat Callum Smith but yes Buatsi is quite one-dimensional and does kind of go pedestrian and switches off. It seemed like Callum Smith had too much experience for Buatsi.

Buatsi is a good fighter but just levels below Bivol, Beterbiev and Benavidez. Buatsi V Yarde would be a great fight.

 

Far too lazy in fights and it caught up with him last night

Smith boxed well but is nowhere near prime and there for the taking

Major set back

 

Positive: physically strong and exceptionally durable, fast recovery after taking hard shots, decent power

Negative: holds too much, mediocre defense, too often stops punching during fights