Wanting to resume his professional career, Ukrainian ex-world champion in light heavyweight (up to 79.4 kg) Oleksandr Gvozdyk (17-1, 14 KOs) in an interview for the YouTube channel ”
Boxing studio of Viktor Yalymov” commented on the upcoming rematch between the unified heavyweight champion (over 90.7 kg) from Ukraine Oleksandr Usyk (19-0, 13 KOs) and former British champion Anthony Joshua (24-2, 22 KOs).
Gvozdyk commented on the appointment of a new British coach, Usyk’s possible weight gain, and also answered other questions about the rematch, which will take place next Saturday in Jeddah (Saudi Arabia).
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– 5 days left before the fight of your friend, teammate – Oleksandr Usyk. What do you think about this fight and how does Alexander feel?
– I talked with Sasha, probably 5 days ago. I spoke with him via video link, I saw his face, I saw how he works, I know how Sasha works, so I believe that he will win again. And in the first fight, based on some of my knowledge, I put Joshua as the favorite, although I was rooting for Sanya, now I put Sanya as the favorite. I think, 70 to 30 percent, that Sanya will take revenge and, perhaps, even stop him. Here, in fact, I believe in it, and then we’ll see.
– Let’s say the fight will go on like last time, in which round can there be a stoppage?
“It seems to me that if this happens, then somewhere at the very end. It practically happened in the first fight, actually. I’m still leaning towards the solution anyway.
Will Robert Garcia help Joshua in any way?
– This is an interesting moment. Joshua, in fact, is already an established boxer: a mature, two-time world champion. There is not enough time to change something in terms of boxing. And the main problem of Joshua in the first fight, I think, was not physics, not condition, but his psychology. But how Robert can help him in this component – I think it can. Therefore, there is also an interesting point here. On the one hand, Joshua is not a fighter, like a boxer, and to go fight Usyk now – he can also cheat. Might drop in the early rounds. And to reformat all this into some kind of competent pressure is difficult. Can Robert do it? I dont know. At the very least, going to a fight with such a morale and in such moral conditions as the first one, then it’s better not to go to it at all, only if you don’t want to earn money and end your career. If you go out to win – I don’t know, it’s interesting to see. There will probably be a different Joshua, but I don’t know how much.
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– Robert Garcia can teach some “dirty tricks”?
— I think he can, it’s 100%. But will they? I think the character of the boxer plays more of a role here. Joshua seems like a gentleman in the ring to me. It is unlikely to do “dirt”. It seems to me. You understand that in this situation it is a hard blow to self-esteem. Maybe it will change him, actually. And maybe it will be more aggressive and more “dirty” theoretically, but for some reason I doubt it.
– If Joshua loses, is it possible to consider that this is the end of his career?
– He’s not old yet. He’s still a heavyweight. Heavyweights, in principle, box well until the age of 45. He is, in my opinion, 32 or 33 years old in total. Here we must return more to his psychology. How much does he want it? After all, he has already earned money for five lives in advance. Therefore, how much does it motivate him, how important is it? At least from his interview, what we see, he shows that he is hungry and still very hungry. But this (defeat) will be a big blow for him.
– Many people talk about Usyk gaining weight, that he is very large, he gained almost 115 kg. What can you say about this, and did Usyk score so much, and how will this help him or not help him in the ring?
Look, I’ve seen the photos. I don’t know how it works. Maybe it’s some kind of psychological trick. I heard that Sasha said that he gained about 15 kg. I didn’t see it in the photo. That is, in one photo that he exhibited there … You know, how two photographers, when they meet, one asks: “Is your wife beautiful or ugly?” And the second replies: “Well, depending on how the light is put.” So in one photo, Sasha looks really massive, and in another photo, when they have already finished the camp, he looks, in principle, the same as he was in the first fight. 15 kg, I think is a noticeable increase. Even if that’s the case, well, that’s probably not a good sign. A sharp set of such weight, perhaps, will slow down Sanya. Sanya was not going to exchange blows with him. Like it or not, some kind, but Joshua is still physically stronger. Therefore, I think that there was no such set, and it was just such a tactical psychological game on the part of Sanya.
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