The Joshua Poll. Has he lived up to the hype of being the next great heavyweight?

If social media was around when Lennox Lewis was fighting you guys would have crucified him and had him retiring 19 fights in when he went the distance with 210 pound non power puncher journyman Levi Billups along with fighting many non top guys and ones out of the top 10 ,he didnt even unify until after he was champion for 4 years,but this is boxing you diminish better fighters over inferior ones......lol

instead we have a 6'6 250 pounder whos smashing through everyone...let that sink in if you think joshua has not yet been at least on point with the hype so far and think its questionable hes not the next great HW,though if you have a legit thought ,theres not much to think about is there? ...lol

 

Hope Fury starts training, looks as if he will after all.......................if he is in shape he will beat Joshua easier than anyone thinks...........

 

Other than Wlad his resume is garbage.

When under pressure against this sub par opposition he resorts to spitting out gum shields, getting his tape loosened or just generally hitting after the bell like a thug.

 

Quite a while to go yet. I mean, let's say he beats Parker and Wilder. Where would those guys rank on the resume of say a Lewis? AJ has his flaws and there are some decent heavies coming through the ranks so if he dominates for 4-5 years then yeah he has lived up to most hype for sure. Wlad's decade of dominance has been heavily slated for the guys around but I think the current batch is worse to be honest. That can change over a couple of years though so let's see.

That said, I think someone ices AJ within the next year or two

 

Not yet he isn't.

He only has one great win and that is over Wlad who showed enough to suggest in his prime he'd have beaten Joshua.

Now on the flip side Joshua is still learning, he overcame a knockdown, in his last fight he overcame cuts. We need to see him go the full 12 now.

But if he beats Wilder and Parker I'd say that he is a bona-fide ATG.

Right now he's potentially so but yet to prove it.

 

I dont think JOshua is selling himself as an ATG, he talks humble enough (whether its a front for a huge ego, I dont know).

Hes aware that hes only just become a champion.

Fury is the one who thinks hes some ATG "I'm better than Ali" shyte.

 

Joshua wasn't prime either , he was a 18 fight novice , so the fight was fought on an even playing field.

Prime vs prime Joshua wins 4 rounds quicker.

 

So far yes, you can't really expect more at this stage in his career.

 

And how exactly do you know what Joshua's "prime" looks like to make an exact prediction like that? Did you travel to future? It's not like he's a teenager, he's a 28 year old man. He might fundamentally improve, but not physically. Whereas we know for a fact that Wad has been better, faster, sharper.

 

He could physically improve. Stamina, speed, agility even power could be improved.

 

People expect too much, that's the problem. If you're a realist then you would say AJ is fulfilling the role of the next great heavyweight. He isn't there yet, but is on the right track. Not every performance is going to be punch perfect, especially now he's operating at the top level. He's come through the gut and chin check (unlike Audley Harrison/David Price), which is huge. Yes he might lose at some point, but so did all the greats. This is heavyweight boxing and it only takes one punch after all.

 

While I tend to side with the "anti-Joshua" argument... I can't help but appreciate this post.

 

Sensible post

 

He might get more elusive, if he cuts down to 240-245 lbs and does less weight lifting.

Still, It's silly to assume a "prime" Joshua would definetly stop Wlad quicker because we don't even know that there'll be a better AJ than this one.

 

No , a fighters development isn't capped at 18 fights. I don't need to attach a flux capacitor to my car and travel into the future to know that Joshua was a novice and will only improve with every fight.

Younger Wlad was heavier and clinched a hell of a lot more. Younger Wlad went life n death with slow as a sloth Peters. Clinchier Wlad is ended in 5 round by Joshua. Thats why he moved around so much in their fight.