The only absolute cruiserweight and heavyweight champion in the history of boxing, the legendary Evander Holyfield shared his opinion on how British heavyweight Anthony Joshua (24-2, 22 KOs) should act in a rematch with Ukrainian Oleksandr Usyk (19-0, 13 KOs), to whom he lost all their titles last September.
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“He has to fight differently. Fight like a big man –
Holyfield says. – No slippers. Only accentuated heavy blows. It’s like competing with your little brother. If he is allowed, he will constantly maneuver, because he is faster. You just need to grab it and hang on it with all your weight. Let him feel that you are stronger. That’s what I mean when I say “fight like a big man”. Believe me, the “big man” Usyk cannot be beaten.
Legend Prediction: “Both fighters have what they need to win. The question is what happens in the ring under pressure. It all depends on what they will think about during the battle. Defeating Usyk is not an impossible task for Joshua. He can deliver his punch to the target. But will he be aggressive enough for that?”
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Holyfield praised British WBC champion Tyson Fury (32-0-1, 23 KOs). It seems that he considers him the strongest in this weight: “He proved his greatness by being the only fighter in the division who is able to make changes in his style and at the same time become even better. I’m not saying that no one can beat him. But there are facts. He was not defeated. This is the first fact. They did not win for the reason that he made changes to his boxing. This is the second fact. And until he is defeated, it is impossible to say with certainty that any particular fighter will do it. This is the whole point of the game. If you haven’t lost, then no one knows for sure whether you can be beaten or not.”
Holyfield continued his powerful thought: “Everyone goes into the ring with some kind of plan for the fight. But in the ring, he disappears somewhere. Everyone believes before the fight that they can defeat the opponent. They believe until they realize that they really can’t. Joshua is taller than Usyk. They are both powerful, so the superiority in speed decided everything. I think Josha is just the perfect opponent for Fury. After all, they are about the same height. Therefore, everything will depend on which of them is stronger. And here, on paper, Joshua seems to have a chance, because he seems to be stronger. But we won’t know for sure until the fight takes place. We can only guess.”
In the meantime, Holyfield suggests Usyk and Joshua will have a rematch – it will take place on August 20 in Jeddah (Saudi Arabia).
Promoter Bob Arum decided to play it safe: “Joshua has a hit, everyone can miss. Even Usyk. And his colleague Eddie Hearn did not convince: Now Anthony is really dangerous.
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