Anthony Joshua vs. Oleksandr Usyk - September 25, 2021

[cormack]

This could be either a really good fight with Usyk bothering AJ with his skills and moves so that AJ has to go for it and KO him or it could be too much of a chess game style almost exhibition 12 rounder .
Either scenario I see Usyk losing but gaining huge respect .

shame we are having to wait so damn long for these HW title fights.

[funso banjo baby]

It's a good fight although it really should have been a bauble defence against Dillian Whyte who has totally earned it.

As for usyk? I don't know

I haven't really seen much of him. He's highly rated but has done nothing at heavyweight apart from beef up.

An upset would rattle the division, that's for sure.

Surely this will be similar to AJ v Povetkin with the added bonus that usyk is younger and presumably more dangerous although not as crafty or seasoned (at hw, at least)?

If usyk gets inside with combos, we all know AJ doesn't like getting hit.

[margaret thatcher]

i'd say usyk is more crafty than pov actually, but doesnt hit nearly as hard

[Ruthless-RKO]

i'd say usyk is more crafty than pov actually, but doesnt hit nearly as hard

Yeh, doesn’t his at hard.

Can definitely score the points the judges need to see.

It’s more like Ruiz. It wasn’t his one punch that was hurting AJ, it was more his fast speed combos and fighting in them bursts.

Usyk can do that too and had much better movement.

[DrDuke]

Today Usyk is the best HW boxer skill-wise after Fury. Both aren't big punchers, but Fury's power seems to be bigger, as he's bigger himself. Usyk definitely have tools to outbox Joshua.

[candyslim]

Joshua is old school. He has been on a mission to become the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world since he turned pro. He recognizes that to accomplish that feat means consistently taking on and beating the best fighters in the world and that knowledge does not faze him.

It is not in his nature to duck a challenge. I think most intelligent and reasonable people now recognize that fact and the residue of haters and fools is a lot smaller than used to be the case.

In Usyk he has another worthy challenger who should take encouragement from the fact AJ tends to struggle against shorter opponents. What would worry me in his shoes is the knowledge that I probably don't have the power to hurt or discourage Joshua, and despite my advantages in technique and stamina I can expect my chin to be tested like never before.

[Ruthless-RKO]

I like this trailer



That shot at 50 seconds is something else.

Only Usyk could pull that off.

[golden_labrador]

i read somewhere Usyk has bulked up since the Chisora fight. like 224lbs now. make a difference?

[Ruthless-RKO]

i read somewhere Usyk has bulked up since the Chisora fight. like 224lbs now. make a difference?

Nearly 230

[golden_labrador]

the Chisora fight must have woken them up. put on some beef to soak up those HW punches

[Cent0089]

Dont underestimate Usyk in this one

[gregregegg]

i read somewhere Usyk has bulked up since the Chisora fight. like 224lbs now. make a difference?

Might of beefed up a touch, but likely if he has got up to 224 now, with a full camp and plenty of sparing he will be down to 220ish.. i dont want him going any heavier than 220, i think at 215 he is a beast. i dont belive at 34 putting on a few Kgs will help power nearly as much as it will hurt endurance. they way for usyk to beat AJ is not get hurt and time him early, then up the speed late. not to just bash him out of there.

[ironbeard]

Dont underestimate Usyk in this one

AJ is the one being underestimated.

[margaret thatcher]

i wish the bookies were underestimating josh more and had it more like i see the fans having it....

[Ruthless-RKO]

[Ruthless-RKO]

Press Release | Ticket Info

Tickets for Anthony Joshua’s huge Heavyweight World Title showdown with Oleksandr Uysk at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Saturday September 25 will go on sale next week.

Matchroom Fight Pass Members will be able to purchase tickets via StubHub (www.stubhub.co.uk) using a priority ticket code from midday on Monday August 2.

General Sale tickets can be purchased via StubHub (www.stubhub.co.uk) from midday on Tuesday August 3.

Tickets are priced £40, £60, £80, £100, £150, £200, £400, £600 and £2000 (VIP).

Access ticketing can be purchased via Tottenham Hotspur by calling +44 344 844 0102, pressing option 1 then 5, from midday on Tuesday 3 August. Once you have completed your purchase, we shall contact you within 48 hours to confirm how you can provide proof of eligibility for your accessible ticket(s). Proof of eligibility will then need to be provided to us by Friday 27 August, or your ticket(s) may be cancelled.

Premium options for this event will also be sold via Tottenham Hotspur. Pricing for our unrivalled packages will start from £225 per person (incl. VAT). To ensure you are kept updated with availability and information on how to purchase, please ensure you have registered your details here: https://www.tottenhamhotspur.com/ticket ... a-vs-usyk/. Further information will then be communicated later this week.

Joshua (24-1, 22 KOs) dominated and then floored IBF Mandatory Challenger Kubrat Pulev to score a brutal ninth-round knockout at The SSE Arena, Wembley last time out in December in what was his first fight on UK soil since he stopped Alexander Povetkin in seven explosive rounds at Wembley Stadium back in September 2018.

The Heavyweight division’s biggest attraction has sold-out stadiums and arenas around the world and now ‘AJ’ returns to the Capital for his fifth stadium fight looking to create more history as he faces his latest WBO Mandatory Challenger at the new state of the art home of Spurs, following in the footsteps of Frank Bruno MBE who defeated Joe Bugner in Matchroom Boxing’s first Heavyweight promotion at the old White Hart Lane in October 1987.

Ukrainian pound-for-pound star Usyk (18-0, 13 KOs) made the move to the Heavyweight division after dominating at Cruiserweight, ending his extraordinary spell at 200lbs as the Undisputed king with a phenomenal run of victories in his opponent’s backyard against Marco Huck, Mairis Briedis, Murat Gassiev and Tony Bellew.

The 2012 Olympic Gold medallist began his assault on the Heavyweight division by retiring Chazz Witherspoon in seven rounds at the Wintrust Arena in Chicago in October 2019 and continued his bid to become a two-weight World Champion when he outpointed Derek Chisora over 12 rounds at The SSE Arena, Wembley last October.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Matchroom Boxing Press Release

General Sale tickets can be purchased via StubHub (www.stubhub.co.uk) from midday on Tuesday August 3.

Tickets are priced £40, £60, £80, £100, £150, £200, £400, £600 and £2000 (VIP).

Access ticketing can be purchased via Tottenham Hotspur by calling +44 344 844 0102, pressing option 1 then 5, from midday on Tuesday 3 August. Once you have completed your purchase, we shall contact you within 48 hours to confirm how you can provide proof of eligibility for your accessible ticket(s). Proof of eligibility will then need to be provided to us by Friday 27 August, or your ticket(s) may be cancelled.

Premium options for this event will also be sold via Tottenham Hotspur. Pricing for our unrivalled packages will start from £225 per person (incl. VAT). To ensure you are kept updated with availability and information on how to purchase, please ensure you have registered your details here: https://www.tottenhamhotspur.com/ticket ... a-vs-usyk/. Further information will then be communicated later this week.

The Heavyweight division’s biggest attraction has sold-out stadiums and arenas around the world and now ‘AJ’ returns to the Capital for his fifth stadium fight looking to create more history as he faces his latest WBO Mandatory Challenger at the new state of the art home of Spurs, following in the footsteps of Frank Bruno MBE who defeated Joe Bugner in Matchroom Boxing’s first Heavyweight promotion at the old White Hart Lane in October 1987.

[thomasjkelley]

If Usyk was to beat AJ it would be the first time a CW has done that since Holyfield did it...this fight is Taylor made for an easy win much like Klitschko's lopsided W against Povetkin

There is no such thing as an easy win against Usyk. The guy is smallish for a HW but he is certainly the best boxer in the division save Tyson Fury. I haven’t seen Usyk struggle against anyone he has yet fought. Against Chisora he looked a bit deliberate but I thought it was just him feeling out what it was going to be like in the ring with a legitimate HW with legitimate punching power. That said, I don’t think he beats Joshua. He could beat him, but I think Joshua could keep him at distance if he utilizes his jab as he did against Ruiz in the rematch

[HomicideHenry]

It's no secret I am not a fan of Anthony Joshua as a person or as a boxer. But he will win this and by knockout in my opinion somewhere around the tenth give or take a round.

I am so sick and tired of hearing people talk about the Ukrainian being the most skilled guy in the heavyweight division--- that's like saying Joe Frazier is a top 10 heavyweight on the basis of knocking out Bob Foster one of the greatest light heavyweights of all time.

His last fight with Chisora, was way too close for comfort and anyone who was honest about it knows that Delboy's best years were quite a long while ago.

And the very fact that he has gave in to the criticism that he has no punching power, putting on unnecessary bulk, shows me that he has already mentally lost the match.

I'm reminded of when Chris Byrd made the gross miscalculation of putting on weight to try and brawl with Klitschko in their rematch--- a man who puts on extra weight has the full intention of trying to make a fight out of it and it's going to cost the Ukrainian.

Don't get me wrong of the top three heavyweights in the world is best chance is against Anthony Joshua--- but everything I am seeing is telling me that the British heavyweight is going to win.

The sad part is is after it's over everybody is going to get on the Joshua bandwagon and act as if he defeated a legitimate heavyweight when that is not really the case at all.

I like Usyk, but he's nowhere near as good as David Haye or Tomasz Adamek was at heavyweight. And those guys ultimately failed against the cream of the crop. Joshua isn't the cream of the crop but he is not far off from the top spot.

The referee and the judges are all going to be on Joshua's side as well. To be the champion you have to convincingly beat the champion. And as low as the Ukrainian's punch rate is, no way, even if he made it the whole distance.

Again I say this as a person who does not like Anthony Joshua. I'd actually bet on Wilder to knock out Joshua. And while I would be probably happy as a pig in shit if Usyk won, thanking Jesus Christ Almighty God, I don't see him winning.

That isn't to say that the Ukrainian is a bad fighter or anything because he's one of the world's best--- just not at heavyweight. He's been given this title shot far too soon.

[Thomastearns]

Does Usyk deserve this fight? Is he even up to it? Or is this just another routine money transfer exercise for Eddie Hearn?

8 more weeks and hopefully all will be revealed.

Currently Joshua is the clear favourite 64% with 40% of us expecting him to knock Usyk out.

On the other hand 34% of us expect Usyk to win.

This more or less corresponds with what the bookmakers are also expecting.

Personally, although I'd prefer something closer to 50/50, I'd still call this a 60/40 fight (Joshua) and that's ok with me. The doubts over favourable A side judging are something we just have to accept as one of the many, many things wrong with boxing.

Things that threaten to make it more like a business than a sport.

Rather surprisingly for Fury v Wilder 3 (just 2 weeks later - hopefully) the odds are much closer. I guess it's tougher to predict because both Fury and Wilder are both tougher to predict.

I still can't see how Wilder can win this after having lost virtually every round to Fury so far. Their previous 2 encounters have done nothing to endorse confidence in Deontay Wilders boxing skills

As often with the canny calculated mind game playing Fury there's always serious doubt whether he will actually go ahead with any fight.

Nevertheless Wilder's power (heavy costumes permitting) and AJs willingness to regularly take risks might make both fights interesting.

Are they worth paying for?

Well that's another question altogether. Especially for Joshua fans. His best fights are the ones where he takes huge risks and almost gets knocked out.

The Klitschko fight will go down as all time classic - still his best fight and possibly the best heavyweight fight of this century.

Joshua's smooth boxing skill victories like those over Parker and Ruiz are not the kind that get headlines around the world.

Deontay Wilder on the other hand can't really box, and as a result all of his fights are exciting.

[squiggy]

It's no secret I am not a fan of Anthony Joshua as a person or as a boxer. But he will win this and by knockout in my opinion somewhere around the tenth give or take a round.

I am so sick and tired of hearing people talk about the Ukrainian being the most skilled guy in the heavyweight division--- that's like saying Joe Frazier is a top 10 heavyweight on the basis of knocking out Bob Foster one of the greatest light heavyweights of all time.

His last fight with Chisora, was way too close for comfort and anyone who was honest about it knows that Delboy's best years were quite a long while ago.

And the very fact that he has gave in to the criticism that he has no punching power, putting on unnecessary bulk, shows me that he has already mentally lost the match.

I'm reminded of when Chris Byrd made the gross miscalculation of putting on weight to try and brawl with Klitschko in their rematch--- a man who puts on extra weight has the full intention of trying to make a fight out of it and it's going to cost the Ukrainian.

Don't get me wrong of the top three heavyweights in the world is best chance is against Anthony Joshua--- but everything I am seeing is telling me that the British heavyweight is going to win.

The sad part is is after it's over everybody is going to get on the Joshua bandwagon and act as if he defeated a legitimate heavyweight when that is not really the case at all.

I like Usyk, but he's nowhere near as good as David Haye or Tomasz Adamek was at heavyweight. And those guys ultimately failed against the cream of the crop. Joshua isn't the cream of the crop but he is not far off from the top spot.

The referee and the judges are all going to be on Joshua's side as well. To be the champion you have to convincingly beat the champion. And as low as the Ukrainian's punch rate is, no way, even if he made it the whole distance.

Again I say this as a person who does not like Anthony Joshua. I'd actually bet on Wilder to knock out Joshua. And while I would be probably happy as a pig in shit if Usyk won, thanking Jesus Christ Almighty God, I don't see him winning.

That isn't to say that the Ukrainian is a bad fighter or anything because he's one of the world's best--- just not at heavyweight. He's been given this title shot far too soon.

Yep. That's a good post.
I really wanted Usyk to be something special. And he was, at cruiserweight. But cruiserweight has such ridiculously low visibility. I too would love to see him pull it off vs. Joshua, but I do not see any likely route to victory for him.

[HomicideHenry]

It's no secret I am not a fan of Anthony Joshua as a person or as a boxer. But he will win this and by knockout in my opinion somewhere around the tenth give or take a round.

I am so sick and tired of hearing people talk about the Ukrainian being the most skilled guy in the heavyweight division--- that's like saying Joe Frazier is a top 10 heavyweight on the basis of knocking out Bob Foster one of the greatest light heavyweights of all time.

His last fight with Chisora, was way too close for comfort and anyone who was honest about it knows that Delboy's best years were quite a long while ago.

And the very fact that he has gave in to the criticism that he has no punching power, putting on unnecessary bulk, shows me that he has already mentally lost the match.

I'm reminded of when Chris Byrd made the gross miscalculation of putting on weight to try and brawl with Klitschko in their rematch--- a man who puts on extra weight has the full intention of trying to make a fight out of it and it's going to cost the Ukrainian.

Don't get me wrong of the top three heavyweights in the world is best chance is against Anthony Joshua--- but everything I am seeing is telling me that the British heavyweight is going to win.

The sad part is is after it's over everybody is going to get on the Joshua bandwagon and act as if he defeated a legitimate heavyweight when that is not really the case at all.

I like Usyk, but he's nowhere near as good as David Haye or Tomasz Adamek was at heavyweight. And those guys ultimately failed against the cream of the crop. Joshua isn't the cream of the crop but he is not far off from the top spot.

The referee and the judges are all going to be on Joshua's side as well. To be the champion you have to convincingly beat the champion. And as low as the Ukrainian's punch rate is, no way, even if he made it the whole distance.

Again I say this as a person who does not like Anthony Joshua. I'd actually bet on Wilder to knock out Joshua. And while I would be probably happy as a pig in shit if Usyk won, thanking Jesus Christ Almighty God, I don't see him winning.

That isn't to say that the Ukrainian is a bad fighter or anything because he's one of the world's best--- just not at heavyweight. He's been given this title shot far too soon.

Yep. That's a good post.
I really wanted Usyk to be something special. And he was, at cruiserweight. But cruiserweight has such ridiculously low visibility. I too would love to see him pull it off vs. Joshua, but I do not see any likely route to victory for him.

Thank you

[Ruthless-RKO]

Bellew Confident Usyk Has Enough Power To Hurt Joshua

Former cruiserweight champion Tony Bellew certainly believes that Oleksandr Usyk is a big enough puncher to score a stoppage win over Anthony Joshua.

Usyk, a former undisputed cruiserweight world champion, will challenge Joshua for the IBF, IBO, WBA, WBO heavyweight titles at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on September 25.

This contest will mark the third heavyweight outing for Usyk.

In his two heavyweight appearances, Usyk did not look as spectacular as he did when he competed at cruiserweight.

Bellew was knocked out by Usyk in November of 2018. It was the final cruiserweight appearance for Usyk and the final bout of Bellew's career.

While some have questioned Usyk's power at heavyweight, Bellew is not one of those critics.

"Believe you me mate, he hits hard enough to send me down. He's exceptional. He's the best I ever faced. He is so technically perfect. His footwork is on another level," Bellew told the DAZN Boxing Show.

For the upcoming bout, Usyk will be trained by Anatoly Lomachenko, who is the father and trainer of three division champion Vasiliy Lomachenko.

In the opinion of Bellew, that scenario makes the upcoming bout that much harder.

"It’s a hard fight, I’m not gonna lie. It’s a very, very hard fight. If anything, it’s just got even harder because Usyk has now gone back with Lomachenko’s father. That makes it even harder because they will create a game plan that is gonna try and negate everything good that Anthony Joshua does," Bellew told Talk Sport.

“They’re gonna try and take everything away from him. That’s what Usyk does so well. He takes away your strengths before he looks at implementing his own strengths. And by taking away your strengths, you’re lost. The things he does with his feet – he’s exceptional. So I think it’s a really hard fight, I think it’s really dangerous.”

[Bandog]

Maybe team Joshua should talk to Breidus, who seemed to come closest to beating Usyk, losing a fairly narrow decision.

[HomicideHenry]

No offense but I never listen to Bellew's opinion because it's obvious he's acting like a shill for the people who pay him.

Ofc he's going to give Usyk all the props, to try to make it look competitive. Ofc he's going to say Joshua, rather than Fury, is the best in the world.

He stopped being his own man the moment he retired and started doing commentary, etc--- just like judges who score fights the way the promoters would want them to do.