The weight gain stories are a myth anyway. Usyk has weighed in just half a pound heavier than the first fight. Added significant muscle to his upper body without piling on the pounds
Definitely wasn't focused in the 1st Ruiz fight, you could see from the ring walk he wasn't right. He was like a rabbit in headlights, there's only AJ or Mckraken can tell that story but he definitely wasn't right He's never lost twice in a row and if he does lose then yes there are other fights but will he have the motivation is all I'm saying. Like @Stephen Dawson says, he went all Balboa in Rocky 3 and became a media circus. Hopefully he's gone back to basics and let's the boxing do the talking
My own take on this is that AJ wins in a short brawl if he can get his shots off. The longer it goes the more it swings to Usyk. Usyk the better boxer against AJ with the bigger punch. Hoping AJ gets the win.
Think this is classic British behaviour of building them up to knock them down. I didn’t see anything that represented a media circus. I think the late replacement and the best mate approach to Ruiz was a factor. As was whatever went on in the dressing room before the ring walk. But saying all that, he was still one punch away from winning that fight. Wilder really lost three times in a row. Haven’t seen the Americans calling for him to retire.
I think the media and celebrity status softens British fighters up. Look at Frank Bruno. I watched the documentary about him. He had some bo llocks before the pantomime and all that guff.
Not sure I’m down with that. I just think we view it differently and make assumptions that are used less often in other countries. We don’t mention the media circus with all the wins. Then when there’s a defeat we point at it as a major factor.
Good points and i agree with a lot of it. I think my 'losing his bottle' is valid though. When AJ gets hit he gets the old wobbly legs, his guts fall out. Watch the end of round 3 when Usyk landed a couple on him, at the start of the fourth he looked really shook, and when the fight resumed Usyk immediately clipped him and AJ reeled back and nearly tripped over himself. He's not good at taking punches. Hopefully he's toughened up in this regard in sparring.
Being hurt or shook isn't losing your bottle though. Same happened against Klitschko and he recovered and finished him devastatingly. Got clipped against Whyte, composed himself, blasted him out of the ring. Povetkin broke his nose and made him plant his feet in round one. Shook it off. Bellew talked about how mentally draining fighting Usyk is. Imagine that mental strain at the same time as being punched in the face. I'd never call that losing your bottle.
I take your point and Bellew was an excellent judge of Usyk and his capabilities. And you are right with AJs previous fights (prior to Andy Ruiz). I should have been clearer, I think post-Ruiz, he played it safe in the rematch with him, I don't really remember the Pulev fight if I'm honest but he seems past it somewhat anyway, and to me AJ has lost that earlier spark that allowed him to react in the ways that you pointed out (vs Whyte, Klitschko, Povetkin etc) earlier on in his career. Just my observation, but i do think his bottle went quite a lot when he got punched after losing to Ruiz, and he needs to get that sheer aggressiveness back. I know Usyk is a magician - the 'White Rabbit' - and I know AJ went with a terrible game plan that was never going to come off, but he also looked lost in there to me. In the post-fight interviews he was all over the place, really focusing on what he was trying to say, but it all coming out as bizarre ramblings of a tired fighter. I hope he's got his fight back, and I respect him taking on the fight, as he did previously. Let's hope he's better prepared and ready to get in there and get dirty.
Couple of points on this one mate. 1) I don't think any fighter should be interviewed at ringside. They've just gone to war for potentially 36 minutes, been hit in the head, displayed fitness levels beyond the standard sportsman, and are expected to then speak to the media and crowd. Get them backstage for ten minutes, hydrate, relax, and then speak. So I wouldn't read too much in to that. He also just lost all his belts - I'd be rambling as well! 2) You're underplaying Usyk's role in AJ looking like that I think. He looked lost because the game plan wasn't working. You can't adapt and figure out someone like Usyk mid-fight. Saying all this, with all the criticism coming his way from Sky Sports (funny how that switch has flipped now he's no longer their fighter - the absolute worst that lot), it was a two round fight. It was just the rounds he lost he lost pretty convincingly so felt wider than it was. Be a great fight tomorrow. Can't wait.
Sorry mate, I've not been clear again(!)... 1) I don't mean the interview immediately after the fight, or on the day of the fight. I mean the days and months after. I watch a lot of boxing content on YouTube and have studied AJ closely out of interest in recent months and the aftermath of the Usyk fight. It's my view - and this may sound extreme, but I believe it - that he lost his way. He was saying things that I believe he felt he needed to say, but I didn't believe what he was saying. It didn't feel genuine to me - how he was going to take time out in America, how he would bounce back - it didn't feel to me like he believed it himself. I know this is deep and just my view (my girlfriend said the same too, so that's two of us! Ha). It's almost like he was so shattered in defeat that he was having an identity crisis, and he was coming out with all this philosophical stuff with a positive spin that just didn't feel right. I don't mind AJ (though I am definitely in the Fury camp), and I respect him and hope he has rediscovered himself and focused recently on why he got into boxing in the first place in order to hopefully rediscover that raw edge. The fight at Tottenham was a bit embarrassing in the end - i understand it to an extent, it's a major event, but after the fireworks and all the promo he does on the side ('some days are rough, some days are tough'), to me he looked a bit silly - have the fireworks when you've won kiddo, not before a fight in which you lost quite convincingly. 2) I take nothing away from Usyk either, he is a phenomenal fighter. Looking forward to tomorrow night mate, I wish them both well but I'm expecting an Usyk win (although i keep changing my mind!).
Anyone got any links for the fight? Was tempted to buy but don’t fancy £27 when my energy bill is about to treble.
Not convinced he would TBH. I think Usyk is all wrong for him and would probably give him a much harder fight that Joshua. You would think Fury would be bigging up Usyk to win as 2 undefeated champions going head to head would be huge.
AJ has to go back to old AJ pile in, blitz him throw heavyweight shots he cant putbox Uysk as last fight showed. Use his old devastating power, uysk is small heavyweight, cruiser is natural weight. Use ya armoury AJ.
I'm off down the pub to watch it. Tesco vouchers for food at the Hungry Horse and a couple of lime sodas, will cost me about £2. 'I'm alright Jack'