Has Joshua got what it takes to better Fury?
There were moments in Anthony Joshua's thrilling knockout win over Kubrat Pulev that gave you the impression that the 31-year-old British fighter was still battling to regain his confidence after a surprise loss to unheralded Andy Ruiz Jr in the summer of 2019. That’s not to say that Joshua didn’t outclass Pulev from the first bell – he did, and his eventual knockout punch was vintage Joshua in every sense. It was powerful and destructive, yet alarmingly elegant.
But there were occasions when Joshua looked slightly hesitant to drop his hands and finish Pulev off sooner than the ninth round. Of course, the 39-year-old deserves credit for the way he manfully kept going despite being under relentless siege from Joshua, but just as his resilience looked to have ended, Joshua would take his foot off the gas and offer Pulev a way back into the bout.
Indeed, his hesitancy didn’t go unnoticed and it does seem like British fight fans are seeing a new Anthony Joshua in the ring. Physically, he is as toned as ever but, psychologically, he is not at his best and you would have to pinpoint the loss to Andy Ruiz Jr at Madison Square Garden as the reason why. It was during this bout that Joshua had sent Ruiz to the canvas as early as the third round and, for all the money in the world, the writing looked to be on the wall for his opponent.
When the fourth round came, Joshua dropped his hands in a bid to administer the last rites to Ruiz, which was a decision that would ultimately cost him the chance to one day retire as an undefeated fighter. Ruiz sprung into life and went toe-to-toe with Joshua as they traded blows without any intention of defending themselves, with the Mexican emerging superior. By the seventh round, the referee had seen enough and called the fight off. Joshua looked on, utterly bewildered at what happened as the wild celebrations of Ruiz’s team began in the ring.
The Englishman was able to avenge that surprise loss in Saudi Arabia only a few months later but everyone who watched his latest fight with Pulev could see that evident scar tissue remains.
If Joshua is to beat Tyson Fury in 2021, he may have to throw caution to the wind by trying to knock his evasive opponent out given that, if it came down to pure boxing ability, Fury would in all likelihood beat Joshua on points. That is at the very least what the latest boxing betting suggests, with Fury the outright favourite at 8/15 to win.
In reality, Joshua would need to vanquish his demons if he stands any chance of sending Fury to the canvas.
The encouraging news for Joshua is that history tells us that Fury can be floored by a hayemaker after Deontay Wilder sent him crashing to the canvas in the 12th round in 2018. Granted, Fury was able to get up but there is reason to believe that Joshua is a harder puncher than Wilder. Should he connect, there’s every chance Fury won’t get up in time.
To achieve any sort of knockout win over Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua will have to find a way to trust his boxing skills again when trading blows. If he remains in his shell and shows the same hesitancy that he did against Pulev, Fury will dictate the tempo from the first round and stroll to a comfortable win on points.