ANTHONY JOSHUA has been urged not to ‘sit off’ and allow Oleksandr Usyk time and space in their Tottenham tussle.
The Watford warrior will defend his unified heavyweight titles against the former undisputed cruiserweight king at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on September 25.
Usyk’s footwork and ability to glide in and out of range will be Joshua’s two biggest problems on fight night, which the recently-retired Luke Campbell reckons AJ can offset by putting the slick southpaw on the backfoot.
He told The Mirror: “I think it is a great fight, Usyk is an unbelievable talent.
“His technique and boxing IQ is certainly up there with the best, but is he a heavyweight?
“I don’t think he is quite a heavyweight to be honest, this is where Joshua has the advantage.
“Joshua has got quick hands, and is a big strong heavyweight so if he imposes his strengths I think he will win the fight.
“If he sits off it could be Usyk’s night, and I can’t see Usyk wanting to get involved in a big strong heavyweight like Joshua. So his tactics will mostly be to make him miss, move around.
“Joshua has to put it on him.”
Usyk has put on a considerable amount of size since moving up to heavyweight in October 2019.
If he imposes his strengths I think he will win the fight
Luke Campbell on Anthony Joshua’s clash with Oleksandr Usyk
But promoter Eddie Hearn believes the Cat will never be a true heavyweight, telling talkSPORT: “I think that Usyk will never be a fully-fledged heavyweight – a real heavyweight in terms of size.
“What he will always have is a huge amount of skill.
“It takes time for people to bed into heavyweight, so put it this way, it would’ve been a lot easier fight for AJ a year-and-a-half ago.
“Now Usyk has fought a real heavyweight contender in Chisora, that will actually help him to start to understand what needs to be done.
“But AJ’s a different kind of beast. A good big guy will always beat a good small guy, so we’ll see.”
Victory over Usyk will see Joshua, 32, do his part to preserve a blockbuster undisputed heavyweight title fight with Tyson Fury, which was due to take place in Saudi Arabia next Saturday.
AJ is relishing the clash with his fellow Olympian, saying: “The date is set and we are fully locked in.
“September 25, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, I put it all on the line again and it’s time to defend my crown.
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“We are two Olympic gold medallists who have fought our way to the top and never avoided challenges.
“The stadium is exceptional, the atmosphere will be electric, I’m honoured to be the first person to fight in such an awe-inspiring venue.
“The stage is set and I am ready to handle business.”
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Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
