JOHNNY NELSON says Oleksandr Usyk “looked like he’d been hit by a bus” despite beating Anthony Joshua last September for the WBA, IBF, WBO and IBO heavyweight titles.
Usyk stepped inside the squared circle with Joshua at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and won the fight convincingly on a unanimous points decision.
Joshua and his Ukrainian counterpart were due to do battle in May, and then July.
But there were various hold-ups in negotiations which pushed the fight further back.
Russia’s war with Usyk’s country of Ukraine were among the issues that had an impact.
Usyk, 35, returned to his home country earlier this year to join the fight against Russia, which began in February.
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But he’s now in training camp for his title defence.
The pair will meet in a rematch on August 20 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
And Joshua should take courage from how he left Usyk’s face in the last fight – despite the loss.
Former cruiserweight world champion Nelson says Joshua left Usyk’s face looking like he had “been hit by a bus”, which is a much needed boost ahead of the dust up in Saudi.
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Speaking to Sky Sports, Nelson pointed out Joshua’s power, saying: “Look at the last fight. Look at the state of Usyk when he came out.
“Usyk looked like he’d been hit by a bus even though he won and AJ lost.
“AJ now has to go in and do what he does. Go in and fight his fight. So, let’s see if there’s a difference.
“Use that height, use that range. Use that ruggedness about him. If he uses that, I cannot see him losing. Yes, the hullabaloo is there about Oleksandr Usyk but he is beatable. It can be done.
““This is not an impossible ask. It’s very possible. AJ’s got to go in there with the right mindset, the right game plan.
“This is a fight he can win and become a three-time heavyweight champion of the world.”
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
