Was a poor performance last night and a bit cringe to be honest. Seems like he wanted to entertain but couldn't quite pull it off. He would get ironed out against good opponents fighting like that. Still has bags of talent though and he is allowed a few off nights
Not seen him, but i would suggest and always recommend he plays snooker at least once a week, basics...
The opponent was very poor and if Kelly is as good as Sky etc state then why is he not doing a Lomachenko and clean up World Titles after a few fights? Anyone smell a PPV coming next year?
if they do a Newcastle show again, ritson has to headline with Kelly co-main event, it will benefit Kelly more, as after ritson's fight the crowd was calming down and a style like Kelly's inst gonna get the crowd on their feet screaming especially as he is from Sunderland, not Newcastle. if Kelly fights right before ritson, the crowd will be energetic anticipating ritson's fight and it will improve the atmosphere for Kelly's fight.
I think he's good, possibly very good. But I don't see 'great' talent though. He was getting caught and at times made to miss by a very mediocre fighter who it seems fought with one hand for most of the fight. It IS only his 7th fight, so we need to be patient. But that's the problem with the hype I suppose, it's kind of the same with Dubois - although there is an age and AM experience disparity there. Bellew's line absolutely made me cringe. "The only person who can beat Josh Kelly, is Josh Kelly". Just, no. He's got a long way to go and he'll find out that his style - unless you're very special - doesn't work at the top level. I see someone similar to a Maidana giving him absolute Hell. I think Rios and Ortiz were mentioned as next options. Both pretty over the hill but would be good options for an 8th fight. Whatever you do, do NOT go on Twitter and search 'Josh Kelly Lomachenko'. Just don't.
Sadly his lack of power will mean even if he wins a world title he'll be destined for ppv undercards like Burnett and yafai. Him following ritson was like having last weeks Tyson fury following a prime Mike Tyson.
If Booth has any sense he will start making josh utilize a more conventional style of boxing to mix in with his style at the moment. Kelly was a top am cos the style he uses is more suited to the shorter rds as soon as he comes up against someone who can pressure him and has a good defence, that will be a problem for him. Like as already been mentioned, his lack of power is what negates his style. It will be interesting to see how he deals with not getting things his own way for a few rds. I do like him and wish him well but i just cant see him going to the top with that style, he needs an alternative style to work with and master.
you could hear a pin drop in there after his fight started, he completely sucked all of the atmosphere out of the place
The original comment is obviously from a Matchroom fan. I know its been done to death and we all have our preferences but Sky set a narrative pre fight and don't move from it irrespective of what actually happens in the ring. Bellew was particularly nauseating. A fair assessment of Saturday's performance would be - solid, looks strong at the weight and decent movement. However, wasn't fighting much, doesn't appear to bang hard and got tagged too often. Definite room for improvement, but a prospect and farr from guaranteed to get above British level.
Good prospect - so long as he's matched with guys who can only use one hand. When they step him up to two-handed fighters, we'll see what he's got.
