BoxRec

If this fight happens (Hearn says it likely will but he's not certain) the aging all-time great heavyweight Wladimir Klitschko, who will turn 41 in a few months, has little chance against the powerful young Anthony Joshua.

It will be a bit like Joe Louis vs. Rocky Marciano.

The soon to be 41 year old is going on 70 fights in his 20 year pro career. He's looked poor in his last few and isn't nearly sharp as he once was.

If the much fresher AJ is even half as good as some think, he should stop the old lion without many issues.

Wlad hasn't looked great in his last couple of fights but AJ's best win is over Brezeale who should have lost to Fred Kassi.

AJ is too basic and one dimensional, Wlad will beat him quite easily.

crusader wrote:The soon to be 41 year old is going on 70 fights in his 20 year pro career. He's looked poor in his last few and isn't nearly sharp as he once was.

If the much fresher AJ is even half as good as some think, he should stop the old lion without many issues.

and it would be ugly. wlad missed
the point of an honorable out. at the
latest after pulev he should have called
it a day.

yet it's understandable why after being
a champ for a decade and still viewed
as someone who has to prove a thing
or two, he did stay.

nevertheless it is over for him. joshua
is unbeatable for him. wilder i would
see he has a minor chance. since fury
is out i would think any other fight
does not really make sense.

I hope Klitchko will not fight again

It all depends on how much Wladimir has left. I still think he KOs AJ.

God I hope this fight happens now. If AJ is the real deal, which I think he is. He can bomb away the older Klit. I think Wlads jab and footwork has slowed up. He still has that thudding right though. If Hearn makes this fight i will have a lot of respect for him.

Good fight if it happens. I hope it does.

I think that prime Wlad would beat Joshua. Too fast and sharp for him.

Now it is all about how much Wlad has slipped. I think father time has done its job and Wlad is too far over the hill by now.

Joshua won't pull a Fury, he'll be throwing hard shots and Klitschko will have no option but to engage or get banged out.

Someone is getting KO'd I'd say

I just hope they can find a way to fight for all of the belts in this one. I think that is the reason why the fight hasn't been announced yet. I think that they are waiting for the announcement regarding Fury's stripping but I don't think they should wait. Get the fight scheduled on paper and then start negotiating with the commissions.

Wlad will try to turn it into a clinch fest not too dissimilar to the Pulev fight before the knockdowns and subsequent stoppage. However in this case- Joshua will throw him off and batter him into submission. It will be an ugly fight up until that point though I imagine.

man wrote:

crusader wrote:The soon to be 41 year old is going on 70 fights in his 20 year pro career. He's looked poor in his last few and isn't nearly sharp as he once was.

If the much fresher AJ is even half as good as some think, he should stop the old lion without many issues.

and it would be ugly. wlad missed
the point of an honorable out. at the
latest after pulev he should have called
it a day.

yet it's understandable why after being
a champ for a decade and still viewed
as someone who has to prove a thing
or two, he did stay.

nevertheless it is over for him. joshua
is unbeatable for him. wilder i would
see he has a minor chance. since fury
is out i would think any other fight
does not really make sense.

Don't write Klitschko off and Joshua is pretty stationery and not quick on his feet.

Probably a case of the first one to land a heavy shot, wins.

When you frame it like that, you have to go with Wlad. He's reformed his career out of using every trick-in-the-book (and his own phsyical assets such as height/reach) to not get hit.

Klitchko counter-punches Joshua TFO.

lefty wrote:Wlad will try to turn it into a clinch fest not too dissimilar to the Pulev fight before the knockdowns and subsequent stoppage. However in this case- Joshua will throw him off and batter him into submission. It will be an ugly fight up until that point though I imagine.

I can't see it, to me Joshua is everything wlad likes in an opponent. Lacks head movement, moves in straight lines, isn't bigger than him, and doesn't fight in the inside. Jab jab straight right and cuddling all night long for dr steel hammer unless he is completely shot or Joshua is as good as the hype(which I don't believe he is).

Finn wrote:

lefty wrote:Wlad will try to turn it into a clinch fest not too dissimilar to the Pulev fight before the knockdowns and subsequent stoppage. However in this case- Joshua will throw him off and batter him into submission. It will be an ugly fight up until that point though I imagine.

I can't see it, to me Joshua is everything wlad likes in an opponent. Lacks head movement, moves in straight lines, isn't bigger than him, and doesn't fight in the inside. Jab jab straight right and cuddling all night long for dr steel hammer unless he is completely shot or Joshua is as good as the hype(which I don't believe he is).

The problem with that is Joshua is one strong unit. Much stronger and bigger in stature than Povetkin and Pulev. Also Joshua is very good on the counter and on the inside. I imagine that Wlad goes for his trademark 1-2 and can be countered if not careful. I think the only way Klitchko gets an advantage is if he keeps Joshua at range with the jab, frustrate him a bit. Joshua has had a lot of success so far, landing freely, with very little coming back so he will get frustrated. The last thing Klitchko wants to do is turn this into a fight on the inside.

I've gone for Joshua win in this fight (KO - late [round 9-12]). I think Joshua pushes a decent pace forcing Klitchko on the back foot. He attempts to hold and grab to slow him down but Joshua just shrugs him off. Joshua lands cleanly late on and Klitchko doesn't get up!

Rob3_142 wrote:Also Joshua is very good on the counter and on the inside.

Is he? His only real test was Whyte and he didn't look good doing either.

The last time Klitschko looked good was against Kubrat Pulev, which was almost two years ago. He struggled for a good portion of his fight against Bryant Jennings and barely threw a shot against Tyson Fury.

The thing is… his partner, Hayden Panettiere, had entered rehab multiple times due to postpartum depression and she also cancelled her wedding to Wladimir (around the same period of time). In my mind, this sort of severe and well-publicised distraction must have had some sort of detrimental effect on both his training preparation and also his overall mental state.

So we’re left with a couple of scenarios, Klitschko has either simply grown “old” overnight or his personal problems have affected his performances inside the ring.

If the former is true, then Joshua wins this fight by an eighth round stoppage, but if it’s the latter (and Wladimir’s personal life has recovered, which it seems to have), then it could be one hell of a fight that could favour the Ukrainian veteran, in what could be his last hurrah.

Ricky_ wrote:

Rob3_142 wrote:Also Joshua is very good on the counter and on the inside.

Is he? His only real test was Whyte and he didn't look good doing either.

He showed good inside work against an admittedly erratic Whyte and some excellent examples of countering the jab against a slow Breazeale. He showed proficient technique against two limited fighters, but he showed that he can adapt his style. If he can keep Klitchko close, I think he's stronger overall and can pepper him with body shots and the uppercut.

Enlightened-One wrote:The thing is… his partner, Hayden Panettiere, had entered rehab multiple times due to postpartum depression and she also cancelled her wedding to Wladimir (around the same period of time). In my mind, this sort of severe and well-publicised distraction must have had some sort of detrimental effect on both his training preparation and also his overall mental state.

So we’re left with a couple of scenarios, Klitschko has either simply grown “old” overnight or his personal problems have affected his performances inside the ring.

I think it's actually both. He looked good againt Pulev only because Pulev fought dumb fight and left himself wide open for Wlad's left hook bombs. Leapai was so bad, that even 70 y.o. Wlad would look great against him. Against Povetkin Wlad didn't look good too, because while he dominated for 12 rounds, he was constantly missing with a right hand. So, for the last 3 years the only opponent whom Wlad could hit well with a right hand, was Alex Leapai. Against Povetkin his right hand timing looked off, against Pulev he landed only one right hand, and all knockdowns and KO came after his left hook. And he barely landed anything decent against Jennings and Fury. So, yes, Wlad is clearly past his prime.

I like this fight. Old lion vs. Young Lion.

Who wins? Whoever gets into their rhythm first and lands their best early.

If Joshua losses his fans can say he wasn't ready. If Wlad loses his fans can say he's 40.

But whoever wins has a nice win, and it's been a while since we had a heavyweight championship fight that matters, thanks to Wilder and Fury.

Based on styles and experience, I slightly favor Wlad

i am very surprised many people here
believe wlad can be competitive in this.

Loki wrote:Don't write Klitschko off and Joshua is pretty stationery and not quick on his feet.

neither is wlad ...

man wrote:

Loki wrote:Don't write Klitschko off and Joshua is pretty stationery and not quick on his feet.

neither is wlad ...

Wlad feet are 10 times better than AJ and he's harder to hit.

Loki wrote:

man wrote:

Loki wrote:Don't write Klitschko off and Joshua is pretty stationery and not quick on his feet.

neither is wlad ...

Wlad feet are 10 times better than AJ and he's harder to hit.

10x? That's a little bit of an exaggeration...

Loki wrote:

man wrote:

Loki wrote:Don't write Klitschko off and Joshua is pretty stationery and not quick on his feet.

neither is wlad ...

Wlad feet are 10 times better than AJ and he's harder to hit.

i never saw his footwork as a key
trade of wlad's. maybe there is more
to it that i am aware of. anyways, i
see why wlad's long reign makes him
appear like he could do something in
this fight.

but it definitely make for a very exciting
build up in any case ...