Promoter Eddie Hearn says Anthony Joshua’s punch resistance hasn’t gone away following his one-sided fifth-round KO loss to IBF heavyweight champion Daniel Dubois on September 21.
Fans and the media have called for Joshua’s retirement, feeling that the 34-year-old can no longer land a decent punch without hitting the deck. They want Joshua to call it a day before he is seriously injured and can’t enjoy his massive $200+ million fortune.
The way Joshua was dropped, he looked like a yo-yo on a string, playing with a child. AJ was down repeatedly on the canvas, and had no ability to stay on his feet. The fight should have ended in the third round when the referee appeared to clear it.
If Joshua wants to stay to collect $100+ million fighting Tyson Fury, that’s understandable, and you can’t blame him for that. But he needs to stay away from Dubois permanently, as well as other big punchers like Martin Bakole.
Hearn feels that the right hand that Dubois (22-2, 21 KOs) hit AJ in round one would have eliminated any heavyweight in the division. The right hand that Dubois hit Joshua wouldn’t have done the same thing at any heavyweight. Filip Hrgovic and Oleksandr Usyk were both hit with similar right hands by Dubois, and they took shots.
Hearn says AJ’s punch resistance is still intact
“I think if his punch resistance had gone, he wouldn’t have gotten up from the first knockdown. It was a big right hand that would have put most heavyweights to sleep,” said Eddie Hearn secondsoutHe reacts to being told that the media is saying that Anthony Joshua’s punch resistance is gone after his loss to Daniel Dubois.
The reason Joshua wasn’t defeated in the first round is because Dubois dropped him in the final seconds. If it had happened earlier in the round, Dubois would have finished him.
“Daniel Dubois is a great puncher, and he hit Joshua with the kitchen sink for three rounds and he couldn’t get away. Unfortunately, when he got back into the fight, he went into a monster while he was trading, and you couldn’t get up from that,” Hearn said.
When Joshua chose to fight aggressively in the fifth round, it was obvious that he was going to get knocked out. Instead of being defensive, as he had been in rounds one through four, Joshua put his chin at risk in the fifth, and that made things easier for Dubois to finish.
“So, I don’t believe it. I know sparring is sparring, but no problems with his chin,” Hearn said. “I don’t think there has ever been, but when you’re with big punchers, you can get hurt. We’ve seen a lot of big heavyweights get hurt. Look at Tyson Fury. Usyk isn’t even a puncher.”
First, Joshua is not a “big heavyweight”, nor is Tyson Fury. Second, Fury’s chin hasn’t been the same since his third fight with Deontay Wilder, but he hasn’t fought anyone even remotely good since their third fight in 2021.
Fury had fought a pair of fellow Britons, Derek Chisora and Dillian Whyte, before facing Oleksandr Usyk last May. The end result was Fury being beaten by Usyk, and would have been knocked out in the ninth round if not for the referee, who saved him with an eight count.
“Tyson Fury was standing up, beating around the ring. He just boxed hard,” Hearn said of Fury’s fight with Usyk. “This is just what happens. I am very confident. Now, the big decision will be whether to take the rematch or not.”
The way Hearn is talking, it seems obvious he wants nothing to do with Joshua fighting Dubois again. He won’t be the one to put his head on the line for the fans, he owns the decision to fight Dubois.
“One minute you’re a hero, and the next minute, it’s all your fault,” Hearn said of the criticism Joshua’s trainer Ben Davison receives from fans and the media. “When you do an uppercut, don’t throw it with your left hand at the hip. Do it in one stroke.”
There is no reason why Ben Davison should have ever been a “hero” for Joshua, as the four fights that trained AJ were all against these lower level fighters:
Francis Ngannou
– Otto Wallin
– Roberto Helenius
– Jermaine Franklin
“This was just AJ by instinct, he buzzed Dubois and tried to close the show, and he threw an uppercut from a technical perspective, all wrong, and walked on the right hand,” said Hearn, defending Ben Davison accusing Joshua for the so knockout. rather than his coach, who told him to throw the uppercut. “At that moment, when you start to find your way back into the fight, you have to roll the dice.”
Hearn doesn’t need to whitewash Ben’s faulty instruction by putting him on Joshua for using poor form to throw the uppercut. Joshua didn’t need to roll the dice in the fifth. He should have boxed and put Dubois up for a right overhand at some point.
“He (Joshua) doesn’t have much left in the tank at that point. So, when he sees an opponent, of course, he’s going to go for him,” Hearn said. “Listen, maybe I should have beaten him in seven, eight, nine rounds. It’s very difficult when you’re in the moment and you see an opportunity, you have to take it.
“He showed great form going into that fight,” Hearn said of Joshua. “Rob McCracken is one of the best trainers in the world, and they had a great relationship.
“AJ felt he needed to evolve more as a fighter. I think he’s added a huge amount to his game since then, but Rob was a brilliant part of his career, and there was a huge amount of trust. So, Rob was an incredible asset to AJ,” Hearn said.
Ben Davison should be fired
Joshua should consider sacking Ben Davison and teaming up with Rob McCracken again because change is needed. Davison was the captain of Joshua’s ship, and he came up with flawed battle plans.
He let AJ down in the Wembley massacre and should have been kicked off the court for his failure. If it was the military, Ben would have to meet with his superiors, and a court martial might be in order.
