Vitali Klitschko from Shannon Briggs fight vs. Anthony Joshua from Wladimir Klitschko fight.

Klitschko in my opinion would spank him. The difference between Wlad and Vitali is that Vitali had a steel chin and Wlad not so much. Granted Vits doesn't punch as hard as Wlad but his awkward brand of fighting makes it hard for the other guy to land good punches on him, while at the same time being relentless with his own workrate.

 

I think Vitalis style is all wrong for AJ

 

Klitschko probably by KO

 

Whilst AJ may have the better of the first 3-4 rounds against this version of Vitali, it's unlikely he gets the solid chinned older brother out of there, so AJ from that night would gas out vs Vitali, just as he did vs Wlad.

Wlad let a gassed AJ off the hook and back into the fight, I doubt Vitali would.

 

I must say, I don't know who to pick

 

Vitali by brutal stoppage after eight rounds. No ko, AJ shows huge bottle but is overwhelmed ending defenceless on the ropes..RSF...

 

It was Vitali's idea to do it tho.

 

Whilst AJ beat a better brother, Vitali was 2 years younger than Wlad in Briggs fight. 50/50 here, leaning slightly toward Vitali tho. He would be a nightmare for AJ hen it comes to controlling the fight with his reach. He doesn't have the power that Wlad had, so it would be interesting how it would affect Joshua.

 

You think he'd have more confidence in his own chin and stamina than he did in his brother's?

 

Maybe. Wlad was 41 after all.

 

Wlad is the far greater fighter, but Vitali was way more durable, at any age. Like a protective older brother, Vitali was as aware of Wlad's vulnerabilities as anyone.

Back to my original point, when AJ gassed, Wlad backed off, Vitali would have put the pedal to the floor.

 

Maybe he would, maybe he wouldn't. We need to assume he gets AJ gassed like Wlad did, which is again, a case of maybe he would or maybe he wouldn't. But as I mentioned in my previous post, I'm leaning more towards Vitali in the 50/50 fight.

 

AJ got himself gassed by throwing punches. That "destroyer" version of AJ was more dangerous and less timid than post Wlad, and particular post Ruiz 1, but my God he gassed quickly and couldn't pace himself, relative to his more cautious future iterations.

He'd be a handful for Vitali for 3 or 4 rounds, but I doubt he'd put the iron chinned older brother away, and the AJ that fought that night would definitely have gassed not much further than that into the fight. Watch the round Wlad got the KD in (5 from memory) again, AJ was stumbling around the ring before he got KD'd, not from Wlad's punches, but from sheer exhaustion. Sheer exhaustion of throwing punches for 4 and a bit rounds against a cautious 41 year old who wasn't forcing a high pace.

 

Agreed AJ appeared to have gassed out in R5 trying to finish Wlad but also the momentum of the round changed when Wlad landed a few flush jumping hooks as Carl Froch actually pointed out as well during air.

So I think it was kind of a combination.