THERE are a lot of doubts among fans about Anthony Joshua's ability to withstand the blast of powerful guns that will be hit by Daniel Dubois, the IBF heavyweight champion on September 21 at Wembley Stadium.
A Thoughtful Story?
Joshua (28-3, 25 KOs) goes into the Dubois (21-2, 20 KOs) fight as the favorite based on his recent victories against 0-1 novice Francis Ngannou and contender Otto Wallin, but those victories are not his. anything else.
What matters is whether the 35-year-old Joshua's boxing ability and lack of stamina have developed enough to withstand the speed and heavy blows that Dubois, 26, will throw at him. I don't think it has happened.
Eddie Hearn, Joshua's promoter, did a masterful job of hiding his decline after his back-to-back defeats against Oleksandr Usyk by pairing him with four second-tier fighters, but that didn't change the reality of AJ's situation. Hearn created the illusion of Joshua's return, but it was a lie.
Doubts About Durability
The reality is that Joshua is an older fighter with a weak chin and we are looking at what could be a brutal loss to Dubois. Hearn will not be able to save Joshua in this case because he has to fight Dubois to give himself credibility behind these four confidence boosters.
“People always say that this war is about shooting each other. AJ, a great shooter,” Hearn told IFLTV, trying to build Joshua up.
“You don't want to get shot with AJ because he's very sharp and accurate, but Dubois is very tough,” Hearn said.
Of course, Dubois would want a “shootout with AJ” because Joshua has a problem in fights where he was injured during fights with fighters.
We saw that happen in Joshua's defeat by Andy Ruiz Jr. and his fight with Wladimir Klitschko. Joshua would have lost to the 41-year-old Wladimir if he had gone to the finish after knocking out AJ.
Damaged Prize
What makes the Joshua-Dubois fight stand out is that they are fighting for the IBF belt, which champion Oleksandr Usyk had to give up. It seems bad that Joshua & Dubois, two former victims of Usyk, are fighting for his conviction.
It seems shameful and useless. What did the IBF belt want when they were thrown by the hero who beat them?
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