Who, in boxing history, can demolish Anthony Joshua?

[Jmangho]

Is there anyone who would destroy him? Or would he give ANYONE a good fight?

[DrDuke]

Foreman, Frazier, Ali, Holyfield, Tyson, Lewis, Vitali, prime Wlad, Bowe, Holmes. For the moment I give AJ almost no chances against the legends.

[BoxBuzz]

I think he's got a chance against any of threm.

There are a few that I think would find a way to beat h im.

Foreman and Joshua is a 50/50 in my mind.....Holmes beats him, Lewis is a good bet, Ali would devise a plan that would outpoint him. I think he has a better than even chance against Liston and Tyson. Not sure I'd bet on a Holyfield encounter. IF this is his peak, then the K bros are good bets to beat him.....if he continues to improve.....then these odds shift a bit.

The smaller Heavyweights that were great would have a lot of work cut out for them. The Dempseys, Marciano's G.T and such. Hard to imagine them being able to deal with his size and abilities. I would favor him there.

I think he has to be careful against Wilder...but I'd favor Joshua.

The idea that "he's the best that's ever been" is a stretch to my way of thinking.

[Ambling Alp II]

Foreman is 50-50? I hope you are talking about the fat old Foreman. Tyson, Holyfield, Lewis, Liston? huh?

Joshua's biggest win is barely beating an 41-year old Wladimir Klitschko.
At this point, we don't really know if he could get past people like Pinklon Thomas and Tim Witherspoon.

[Caractacus]

Sonny Liston (even after 1965).

[BoxBuzz]

Foreman is 50-50? I hope you are talking about the fat old Foreman. Tyson, Holyfield, Lewis, Liston? huh?

Joshua's biggest win is barely beating an 41-year old Wladimir Klitschko.
At this point, we don't really know if he could get past people like Pinklon Thomas and Tim Witherspoon.

That's the Foreman I was thinking of.....look Joshua's good, has potential. Kalan cold be on to something....AND....it's going to be a while before the jury can come up with a verdict.....my main point is he's just too untested to date. In my opinion.

I was also thinking of the Foreman who claimed he never wanted to tangle with Lewis.

[Kalan]

Foreman, Frazier, Ali, Holyfield, Tyson, Lewis, Vitali, prime Wlad, Bowe, Holmes. For the moment I give AJ almost no chances against the legends.

Foreman would be easily outboxed in much better fashion than Jimmy Young did it .....

Holyfield was wide open for right hands from a tall fighter unless he chose to box, in which case he wouldn't stand a chance in Hell ..... As history proves, Lewis was wide open for right hand bombs from a good thrower with good height. He's a 1 or 2 round job for AJ ...... Vitali would be out boxed over 12. His legs were very stiff from massive Kickboxing injuries

Bowe was a punching bag and the dumbest fk of the group. He was a coward and a lazy assed trainer. So he'd be the easiest out ..... Wlad is the most dangerous, but AJ would outsmart him, and outlast him like he did last time ..... Holmes would be the toughest guy to outbox - but AJ is too big, strong, and quick for him. Larry had the reach on everybody he fought, but would be giving up reach and length to AJ. Larry would get behind, get careless, and get KO'd.

There has absolutely been NOBODY in Fistic History with Anthony Joshua combination of height, weight, reach, speed, power, smarts, and endurance over 12 rounds.... He was fresh as a daisy in the 11th round with Klitschko, pummeling Wladimir into a powder with non-stop combinations -- while Wlad was clearly spent physically and a gone goose.

Tyson Fury would be no different for Joshua.... Fury did nothing but control the distance with Wlad with his jab.... He stunk the place out with slow pacing and waiting all night for Wladimir to throw somthing or take the lead... It was a super slow fight like the Lewis-Holyfield stinkers... Joshua put on an ATG performance after he had all of 43 amateur fights and 44 professional rounds ... many of them shortened rounds.... We haven't seen this talent level before...

[gilgamesh]

Any big, powerful guy with skill has a chance against anybody, but I don't doubt that there are guys who could catch him early and take him out.

I could see Lennox Lewis doing him like he did Michael Grant.

AJ is still improving with every fight though so maybe he'll correct his flaws before they ever cost him...most guys though aren't even aware of their flaws until it costs them.

[DrDuke]

Foreman, Frazier, Ali, Holyfield, Tyson, Lewis, Vitali, prime Wlad, Bowe, Holmes. For the moment I give AJ almost no chances against the legends.

Foreman would be easily outboxed in much better fashion than Jimmy Young did it .....

Holyfield was wide open for right hands from a tall fighter unless he chose to box, in which case he wouldn't stand a chance in Hell ..... As history proves, Lewis was wide open for right hand bombs from a good thrower with good height. He's a 1 or 2 round job for AJ ...... Vitali would be out boxed over 12. His legs were very stiff from massive Kickboxing injuries

Bowe was a punching bag and the dumbest fk of the group. He was a coward and a lazy assed trainer. So he'd be the easiest out ..... Wlad is the most dangerous, but AJ would outsmart him, and outlast him like he did last time ..... Holmes would be the toughest guy to outbox - but AJ is too big, strong, and quick for him. Larry had the reach on everybody he fought, but would be giving up reach and length to AJ. Larry would get behind, get careless, and get KO'd.

There has absolutely been NOBODY in Fistic History with Anthony Joshua combination of height, weight, reach, speed, power, smarts, and endurance over 12 rounds.... He was fresh as a daisy in the 11th round with Klitschko, pummeling Wladimir into a powder with non-stop combinations -- while Wlad was clearly spent physically and a gone goose.

Tyson Fury would be no different for Joshua.... Fury did nothing but control the distance with Wlad with his jab.... He stunk the place out with slow pacing and waiting all night for Wladimir to throw somthing or take the lead... It was a super slow fight like the Lewis-Holyfield stinkers... Joshua put on an ATG performance after he had all of 43 amateur fights and 44 professional rounds ... many of them shortened rounds.... We haven't seen this talent level before...

[Kalan]

Foreman and Joshua is a 50/50 in my mind.....Holmes beats him, Lewis is a good bet, Ali would devise a plan that would outpoint him. I think he has a better than even chance against Liston and Tyson. Not sure I'd bet on a Holyfield encounter. IF this is his peak, then the K bros are good bets to beat him.....if he continues to improve.....then these odds shift a bit.

Prime Foreman couldn't get rid of little bitty Jimmy Young and got tattooed with jabs and right hands dude. You've gotta be kidding me with Foreman ....... Holmes got leveled with right hands from Shavers and Snipes - not exactly the most deceptive right hand throwers in Fistic History. In comparison, Joshua's right hand is a killer to deal with.

Ali was Punching Bag City. Ali would get really tired from doing almost nothing. Then, lay on the ropes, and let opponents beat his brains in. Ali losing to massive underdogs like the super hittable Ken Norton??? GTFOOH with that Ali crap ..... You'd bet on Joshua against Holyfield cuz It's money in the bank. Holy's too damned small and reachable with big right hands. Even John Ruiz floored Holy with a right hand and beat him. Roy Jones made a complete sap out of the clueless punching bag called John Ruiz. Evander also goes into a shell like he did with slow-assed and hittable Lennox Lewis and gave their 2 fights away ..... This isn't Joshua's peak - but he still outboxes the K-Bros over 12 rounds. AJ said "Anytime they feel like giving it a try I'm ready" ..... Wladimir had enough. He called it a career after his first pummeling by AJ.

[gilgamesh]

Foreman and Joshua is a 50/50 in my mind.....Holmes beats him, Lewis is a good bet, Ali would devise a plan that would outpoint him. I think he has a better than even chance against Liston and Tyson. Not sure I'd bet on a Holyfield encounter. IF this is his peak, then the K bros are good bets to beat him.....if he continues to improve.....then these odds shift a bit.

Prime Foreman couldn't get rid of little bitty Jimmy Young and got tattooed with jabs and right hands dude. You've gotta be kidding me with Foreman ....... Holmes got leveled with right hands from Shavers and Snipes - not exactly the most deceptive right hand throwers in Fistic History. In comparison, Joshua's right hand is a killer to deal with.

Ali was Punching Bag City. Ali would get really tired from doing almost nothing. Then, lay on the ropes, and let opponents beat his brains in. Ali losing to massive underdogs like the super hittable Ken Norton??? GTFOOH with that Ali crap ..... You'd bet on Joshua against Holyfield cuz It's money in the bank. Holy's too damned small and reachable with big right hands. Even John Ruiz floored Holy with a right hand and beat him. Roy Jones made a complete sap out of the clueless punching bag called John Ruiz. Evander also goes into a shell like he did with slow-assed and hittable Lennox Lewis and gave their 2 fights away ..... This isn't Joshua's peak - but he still outboxes the K-Bros over 12 rounds. AJ said "Anytime they feel like giving it a try I'm ready" ..... Wladimir had enough. He called it a career after his first pummeling by AJ.

Anthony Joshua doesn't have the defensive prowess of Jimmy Young. He'd have to take Foreman's power punches, and I don't expect he'd take 'em well.

[Boxing Writer]

Any big, powerful guy with skill has a chance against anybody, but I don't doubt that there are guys who could catch him early and take him out.

I could see Lennox Lewis doing him like he did Michael Grant.

AJ is still improving with every fight though so maybe he'll correct his flaws before they ever cost him...most guys though aren't even aware of their flaws until it costs them.

AJ is much better than Grant - much more skilled, has much better balance, more power and is much smarter comparing to Michael. And, of course, he has a better chin.

It's like saying that Wlad would demolish AJ the same way he demolished Derrick Jefferson and Ray Austin.

Of course, if AJ fought a reckless fight (like against Whyte), he could've been caught early by Lewis, prime Wlad or Foreman, but he is a smart guy - there are no chances of him fighting Lewis the same way he fought Whyte.

[gilgamesh]

Any big, powerful guy with skill has a chance against anybody, but I don't doubt that there are guys who could catch him early and take him out.

I could see Lennox Lewis doing him like he did Michael Grant.

AJ is still improving with every fight though so maybe he'll correct his flaws before they ever cost him...most guys though aren't even aware of their flaws until it costs them.

AJ is much better than Grant - much more skilled, has much better balance, more power and is much smarter comparing to Michael. And, of course, he has a better chin.

It's like saying that Wlad would demolish AJ the same way he demolished Derrick Jefferson and Ray Austin.

Of course, if AJ fought a reckless fight (like against Whyte), he could've been caught early by Lewis, prime Wlad or Foreman, but he is a smart guy - there are no chances of him fighting Lewis the same way he fougght Whyte.

You guys jump to conclusions too much.

I didn't say Lennox Lewis WOULD demolish Anthony Joshua. I said "I could see Lennox Lewis doing him like he did Michael Grant"

The question here is "Who in boxing history CAN demolish Anthony Joshua" whether they can and whether they will or would are two different things, but I certainly don't think anybody would argue that Lennox was incapable of knocking out Joshua or vice versa.

Michael was 32-0 and had won most of his fights by KO when Lennox did what he did to him. I wasn't a fan yet, but I'll bet a lot of people thought Grant was gonna kick Lennox's ass, or at least didn't expect he was gonna be done in inside 2 rounds.

[Noxy]

A peak Fury! There, that’s the touch paper lit now

[Bodyshot3]

I actually think Holmes would prove to be the real wrong 'un for AJ right now.

Larry was seasoned, mentally tough, big enough and also had the smarts not to get bullied/shoved about and that great jab would be scoring often and had the bite to keep AJ at a distance.

Not a demolition job for sure which was actually the question; but Holmes broke folk down bit-by-bit and I could see him jabbing Joshua to hell and then stepping in at a time of his choosing.

Prime Foreman is the guy who meets fire-with-fire and if he lands first then Joshua gets dumped and George would not be afraid to come looking for AJ. He'd back himself to win a shoot-out.

[Flump]

AJ is a work in progress still, too early to definitively say who he'd beat and who he wouldn't. All the other fighters mentioned had a career that played out so you can point to fights where they struggled or lost to support your theories.

His only, by historical standards, good opponent had him on the floor and gassed but he showed heart to turn it around. So he has ticked some boxes but until we know the measure of the man it's hard to say.

[gilgamesh]

AJ is a work in progress still, too early to definitively say who he'd beat and who he wouldn't. All the other fighters mentioned had a career that played out so you can point to fights where they struggled or lost to support your theories.

His only, by historical standards, good opponent had him on the floor and gassed but he showed heart to turn it around. So he has ticked some boxes but until we know the measure of the man it's hard to say.

And the one that had him down and gassed was in his 40's.

[Flump]

AJ is a work in progress still, too early to definitively say who he'd beat and who he wouldn't. All the other fighters mentioned had a career that played out so you can point to fights where they struggled or lost to support your theories.

His only, by historical standards, good opponent had him on the floor and gassed but he showed heart to turn it around. So he has ticked some boxes but until we know the measure of the man it's hard to say.

And the one that had him down and gassed was in his 40's.

Indeed, though I thought Klitshcko fought well, much better than when he was rolling over plodders in title defences. I was never a fan, but he went out like a champ.

[gilgamesh]

AJ is a work in progress still, too early to definitively say who he'd beat and who he wouldn't. All the other fighters mentioned had a career that played out so you can point to fights where they struggled or lost to support your theories.

His only, by historical standards, good opponent had him on the floor and gassed but he showed heart to turn it around. So he has ticked some boxes but until we know the measure of the man it's hard to say.

And the one that had him down and gassed was in his 40's.

Indeed, though I thought Klitshcko fought well, much better than when he was rolling over plodders in title defences. I was never a fan, but he went out like a champ.

Oh no doubt it was one of Wlad's most inspired performances in a long while. I think deep down he knew it was his last hurrah, and he gave it all he had. Reminds me of that old cliche "Every great fighter has one more great fight in him" that was his.

[Flump]

And the one that had him down and gassed was in his 40's.

Indeed, though I thought Klitshcko fought well, much better than when he was rolling over plodders in title defences. I was never a fan, but he went out like a champ.

Oh no doubt it was one of Wlad's most inspired performances in a long while. I think deep down he knew it was his last hurrah, and he gave it all he had. Reminds me of that old cliche "Every great fighter has one more great fight in him" that was his.

Absolutely agree.

[Seamus]

I don't know how anyone can look at Joshua's performance against a 41 yr old Wlad, and still see him winning against a prime Lennox Lewis.

[Kalan]

Any big, powerful guy with skill has a chance against anybody, but I don't doubt that there are guys who could catch him early and take him out.

I could see Lennox Lewis doing him like he did Michael Grant.

AJ is still improving with every fight though so maybe he'll correct his flaws before they ever cost him...most guys though aren't even aware of their flaws until it costs them.

AJ is much better than Grant - much more skilled, has much better balance, more power and is much smarter comparing to Michael. And, of course, he has a better chin.

It's like saying that Wlad would demolish AJ the same way he demolished Derrick Jefferson and Ray Austin.

Of course, if AJ fought a reckless fight (like against Whyte), he could've been caught early by Lewis, prime Wlad or Foreman, but he is a smart guy - there are no chances of him fighting Lewis the same way he fougght Whyte.

You guys jump to conclusions too much.

I didn't say Lennox Lewis WOULD demolish Anthony Joshua. I said "I could see Lennox Lewis doing him like he did Michael Grant"

The question here is "Who in boxing history CAN demolish Anthony Joshua" whether they can and whether they will or would are two different things, but I certainly don't think anybody would argue that Lennox was incapable of knocking out Joshua or vice versa.

Michael was 32-0 and had won most of his fights by KO when Lennox did what he did to him. I wasn't a fan yet, but I'll bet a lot of people thought Grant was gonna kick Lennox's ass, or at least didn't expect he was gonna be done in inside 2 rounds.

NO top boxing people picked Grant over Lewis... Grant was slow, ponderous, had no jab or any weapons of any kind.... He had no defense or finesse.. He was cloddish on his feet.. Tomasz Adamek wanted a Grant fight to prep him for a title fight with 40-year-old Vitali Klitschko... It didn't... Grant was a great big tall guy who could hit... That's the end of his story.

[HomicideHenry]

My list would be 100 names or better long, but Earnie Shavers would have poleaxed him definitely.

[Kalan]

My list would be 100 names or better long, but Earnie Shavers would have poleaxed him definitely.

Yeah.... Just like you think Max Baer should have poleaxed Jimmy Braddock... Only he couldn't and you don't accept it...

And like Shavers poleaxed Ron Stander, Jerry Quarry, and Tex Cobb.... Except they absorbed everything Earnie threw and then beat the living shitt out of the chinny swinger... I can still see Earnie falling on his face when novice Stander belted him out... Shavers didn't want a rematch with the green fat kid..... And it's not as if you could miss Stander with a punch.

[oogiebe]

Let's see how he does in his next several fights IF he steps up in competition. He is still limited. Comps are ridiculous at this point in time. His best win was against a 42 y/o way past his prime Vladimir.