By Sam Volz: Eddie Hearn says he wants Anthony Joshua to “damage” Oleksandr Usyk in their rematch on August 20th in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Hearn believes the best route for Joshua (24-2, 22 KOs) to inflict damage on the unbeaten unified heavyweight champion Usyk (19-0, 13 KOs) is by throwing combinations and putting it on him for the entire three minutes of every round.
The main obstacle that could get in the way of the 32-year-old Joshua from following Hearn’s plans is his historically poor gas tank, which has plagued him his entire nine-year professional career, and his inability to take hard shots to the head.
If Joshua’s new trainer Robert Garcia can fix his stamina and punch resistance issues during their eight-week training camp, we could see AJ pull off the upset on August 20th in handing Usyk his first loss.
To fix Joshua might take a Dr. Frankenstein type of trainer, and it’s questionable whether Robert Garcia is the man to do it. His training plans are more centered around brawling and roughing up opponents, and if Joshua follows that strategy, he may not last more than a handful of rounds before Usyk gets to him.
“He has to let his hands go more, he has to damage Oleksandr Usyk whenever he can and he has to take him out of his rhythm,” said Eddie Hearn to DAZN about the keys to victory for Joshua for his rematch with Oleksandr Usyk.
“I believe you’ll see a much more aggressive Anthony Joshua in this fight”
🎥 @EddieHearn | @MatchroomBoxing #UsykJoshua2 #RageOnTheRedSea pic.twitter.com/BDUDO4pYKA
— DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) June 21, 2022
One can sense the worry and desperation in Hearn’s voice when he talks about Joshua. The promoter is very worried about Joshua; well, he should be. Joshua is Matchroom Boxing’s flagship fighter; without him, the promotional company would take a massive hit.
If Joshua loses, it will knock a big chip off of Matchroom Boxing. Yes, they’ll still have Canelo Alvarez among their stable, but the Mexican star is more focused on playing golf at this stage of his life, and his career is pretty much over.
“I don’t think Oleksandr Usyk likes to get hit, and I don’t think he liked getting hit in the first fight, and he didn’t get hit much,” Hearn continued with his pearls of wisdom.
“So, AJ has got to take the chances when they present themselves, he’s got to be smarter, but he’s got to let his hands go. I think this fight will be a lot more exciting than the first fight because AJ shared 12 rounds.
“He understands the skills and the attributes of Oleksandr Usyk, and he has to negate that with his assets, which is his power, his speed, his combination punching. It’s easier said than done, but certainly, I think you’re going to see a much more aggressive Anthony Joshua in this fight,” Hearn said.
