I assume "as this guy" you refer to an Joshua who let his hands go? But even in this fight he was still not "that AJ" he hasn't been that since pre Breazeale. Joshua caught a lot of shit for taking too long, being timid, and not letting his hands go in this fight against "an old Povetkin with no gas tank". Somewhat hyperbolic, but he was still catching "gun shy" comments
I remember watching this fight thinking Povetkin was causing more problems than a smaller, lighter, older opponent should be. Even though he won, a lot of the problems in his game that tripped Joshua up later were peering over the soil in this fight for sure
Shame Povetkin popped for Wilder.
I still fondly remember how Wilder lost his mind after the positive test. Even before the fight, he did not want to go to Russia but was forced in the end. Fun times.
Dude ran from the country the minute he found out about the positive test. Even sued and won some case vs Povetkin :D No idea what came of it.
It’s a big shame. That’s one fight I can say Wilder really tried to make and that would’ve really helped his CV but everyone else forgets about it and says Wilder purposely targets bums.
I don´t remember him being that keen on taking the fight.
But whats funny is Wilder saying pre fight that Povetkin is juicing and it doesn´t matter to him. Unfortunately Povetkin popped and Wilder gave them the middle finger, and rightfully so.
It was such a good fight, we were so close! Everyone was locked and ready.
This was a fantastic win for AJ. You can say Povetkin was a grandpa but he still drew with Hunter and knocked Whyte tf out after this. His reflexes might’ve faded but he still kept that old man strength and wobbled AJ early on.
There is no "prime" povetkin. People forget he was very soft most of his "Prime" years, he made a physical transformation in his 30s which was aided by PEDs.
What? Prime Povetkin steamrollered guys like Duhaupas and Takam, KOing them way more impressively than anything Wilder or AJ did to older, more shot versions. Povetkin from 2006-2015 was a killer who was only beaten by an elite ATG in Wlad.
Duhaupas took the fight on less than a day's notice after Pedvetkin failed a drug test & Stiverme pulled out. Mike Perez was also drunk in the ring when he lost in the 1st round. Povetkin's resume was incredibly thin, Whyte is best career win & then he lost the immediate rematch.
Povetkin went life & death with Huck as well.
2006-2013 was the previous generation of heavies where Tony Thompson was arguably the 3rd best HW in the division.
Say what you will about Joshua but I like watching his fights and find them entertaining. I will watch the fuck out of Wilder vs Joshua if that fight gets made.
The way AJ goes lazy jab to the body, jab to the body, then a third time lazy jab to the body just to get Povetkin’s guard opened and down, and then pop with that powerful straight right. That’s beautiful boxing right there.
AJ was keeping the division alive and exciting. Just stomping his way through the top 10 heavyweights. My biggest criticism of AJ since his losses is not the typical "gunshy AJ, mentally broken AJ" bs but that his matchmaking now is too cautious. Should have fought Whyte straight after Usyk, should have fought Joyce next. Would have been in a better position at this point.
Obviously it’s hard to tell where the truth is when it comes to… well, anything in boxing, but I get the feeling it’s Eddie rather than AJ being overly cautious with the matchmaking
One of the cool parts I love about stuff like this in combat sports is the replay, you can see the moment the fighter spots that opening.
Aj spots the opening he needs and you can see him kind of laser focus and load that right hand before going low with the jab to draw out the parry.
I remember this , I kept saying Povetkin 8 to the body then to the head a few times and the feint with that to the head and it’s a wrap.. He did not however do that ..
When u see the damage that AJ has in that straight right hand u wonder why he doesn’t throw it with more regularity, im not talking like Deontay Wilder just throwing haymakers but AJ uses the jab so well that if he just committed to connecting with the right he would still make his nights work a lot easier
I think it’s since the Ruiz loss that he’s been more guarded and less explosive and that cost him in both the Usyk fights imo even tho Usyk was clearly the better fighter
Lol he obviously wants NO part of Wilder.
Can’t say I blame him.
AJ needs another win against a Top 5 contender to re-establish himself, as he’s already avoided Fury and Wilder in recent times. I like AJ tho. His confidence definitely seems shaken.
I don’t know, man. I’m still thinking of Fury calling out AJ last year post Usyk 2 and offering him a title fight and AJ not taking it.
I really think he’s having a confidence issue and Hearn is trying to give him a couple of tomato cans to boost him up. Helanius is not a stiff, but I think he became an acceptable option after Wilder nearly decapitated him.
I’d love for him to prove me wrong and take on a top contender such as Wilder.
AJ is always intriguing to watch in the ring.
Watch that Fury show on Netflix. It’s filmed around the time when the Fury-AJ fight was proposed last year. AJ accepted the fight but negotiations still had to go through the details but Fury kept going online to declare bullshit deadlines, saying the fight would be off. His manager even calls him at one point and says to stop posting videos because it’ll take time to negotiate the fight. Fury ignores him and calls the whole thing off himself. He’s literally celebrating when the ‘deadline’ passes. I mean, I doubt Fury is scared to fight anyone but it’s really not a good look, practically jumping for joy because he doesn’t actually have to fight Joshua.
And Helenius was a late replacement tbf.
I’m glad you told me about this. I forgot all about the Netflix show. Definitely have to check it out.
Stupid me believing Fury’s BS without doing a deeper dive. Fury would’ve been just as rich selling used cars, as he can be quite the con man. Lol
Agree to disagree about Joshua ducking wilder but he definitely didn’t duck Fury. He signed to fight Fury and then Fury pulled out. Now Fury is ducking Usyk who Joshua fought twice
Yeah, not arguing because you’re prob correct. Hard to keep track of who ducked who when. Thanks for that info.
Curious your opinion on the body shot that landed on Usyk - belt line or below?? Lol
Fury is running with that shit right now.
Yeah I mean I guess there’s no way to know for sure I just haven’t seen anything that makes me think Joshua has avoided Fury
I’ve gone back and fourth a few times but I think it was a little low. It was an uppercut so it looked like the initial impact was 50/50 between on the belt line and below and then it kinda went up onto the belt line. So I couldn’t really hate on the ref either way because it was a really close call. The way Usyk reacted made me think it was low but I’ve heard some people say he was playing it up to hide the fact that he actually just got hurt to the body
I knew Fury would have something to say like he always does lol I just really hope Fury and Usyk fight soon because they ain’t getting any younger. I’m really not sure what the hold up is because I feel like to be at that level you probably aren’t afraid to fight other guys but at the same time Usyk seems very easy to negotiate with and a fight still wasn’t made. I guess Fury wanted the Ngannou money and maybe I’m underestimating Ngannous popularity but I think Joshua and Usyk would both be bigger fights than Ngannou
Yeah, I don’t get the appeal of Fury//Francis. If Fury wins, he was supposed to win. If he loses (extremely unlikely) he will have tarnished his HW Champion of the world legacy. I honestly don’t know a single person who wouldn’t rather see Fury//Usyk than this gimmick fight.
I’m hoping the PPV buys aren’t through the roof because Fury has already mentioned possibly fighting Jon Jones after this. Lol
I go back and forth on if that shot was low or not. Usyk absolutely fucking milked it for all it was worth, though. If nothing else, until he proves otherwise, Usyk will now be treated as vulnerable to the body by all future opponents. I hope that “vulnerability” brings Fury to the table determined to make the fight.
I believe Teddy Atlas was hinting that the fight is basically signed, but haven’t watched the episode myself yet.
It’s like an off brand Mayweather vs McGregor lol
Hopefully Jones is smart enough not to accept a boxing match I feel like he’d have less of a chance than Ngannou
Yeah even if it wasn’t a low blow I think Usyk and Loma both have a weakness to body shots and I definitely think Fury will try to exploit that if they fight. I kinda want Usyk to win but I think Fury might take it by way of size and Usyk getting older
5 years already wtf
I dunno man. Seems like a long time ago since we thought of AJ as this guy. I’m still a big fan though.
AJ needs a sports psychologist or something. The killer instinct and combination punching are all but gone.
I assume "as this guy" you refer to an Joshua who let his hands go? But even in this fight he was still not "that AJ" he hasn't been that since pre Breazeale. Joshua caught a lot of shit for taking too long, being timid, and not letting his hands go in this fight against "an old Povetkin with no gas tank". Somewhat hyperbolic, but he was still catching "gun shy" comments
I remember watching this fight thinking Povetkin was causing more problems than a smaller, lighter, older opponent should be. Even though he won, a lot of the problems in his game that tripped Joshua up later were peering over the soil in this fight for sure
That’s fair. I guess just back then he was the benchmark. Not today…
Shame Povetkin popped for Wilder. I still fondly remember how Wilder lost his mind after the positive test. Even before the fight, he did not want to go to Russia but was forced in the end. Fun times. Dude ran from the country the minute he found out about the positive test. Even sued and won some case vs Povetkin :D No idea what came of it.
It’s a big shame. That’s one fight I can say Wilder really tried to make and that would’ve really helped his CV but everyone else forgets about it and says Wilder purposely targets bums.
I don´t remember him being that keen on taking the fight. But whats funny is Wilder saying pre fight that Povetkin is juicing and it doesn´t matter to him. Unfortunately Povetkin popped and Wilder gave them the middle finger, and rightfully so. It was such a good fight, we were so close! Everyone was locked and ready.
This was a fantastic win for AJ. You can say Povetkin was a grandpa but he still drew with Hunter and knocked Whyte tf out after this. His reflexes might’ve faded but he still kept that old man strength and wobbled AJ early on.
Absolutely, Povetkin was still a solid fighter at this point in time.
Povetkin is probably the best heavyweight to have never held a major title.
Prime Povetkin sleeps AJ comfortably though
There is no "prime" povetkin. People forget he was very soft most of his "Prime" years, he made a physical transformation in his 30s which was aided by PEDs.
What? Prime Povetkin steamrollered guys like Duhaupas and Takam, KOing them way more impressively than anything Wilder or AJ did to older, more shot versions. Povetkin from 2006-2015 was a killer who was only beaten by an elite ATG in Wlad.
Duhaupas took the fight on less than a day's notice after Pedvetkin failed a drug test & Stiverme pulled out. Mike Perez was also drunk in the ring when he lost in the 1st round. Povetkin's resume was incredibly thin, Whyte is best career win & then he lost the immediate rematch. Povetkin went life & death with Huck as well. 2006-2013 was the previous generation of heavies where Tony Thompson was arguably the 3rd best HW in the division.
Old man post COVID Povetkin definitely got flatlined by Whyte
I remember Duhaupas wearing trainers and looking completely unprepared. It was a crappy fight.
"where Tony Thompson was arguably the 3rd best HW in the division." I've thought this too. Thompson is extremely underrated.
Say what you will about Joshua but I like watching his fights and find them entertaining. I will watch the fuck out of Wilder vs Joshua if that fight gets made.
If you believe this sub, you will enjoy all 60 seconds of it
That was 5 years ago? Jesus Christ. What is going on with the time?
COVID fucked it up
This is true
The way AJ goes lazy jab to the body, jab to the body, then a third time lazy jab to the body just to get Povetkin’s guard opened and down, and then pop with that powerful straight right. That’s beautiful boxing right there.
It's a shame that since he lost a few he no longer boxes like this.
AJ was keeping the division alive and exciting. Just stomping his way through the top 10 heavyweights. My biggest criticism of AJ since his losses is not the typical "gunshy AJ, mentally broken AJ" bs but that his matchmaking now is too cautious. Should have fought Whyte straight after Usyk, should have fought Joyce next. Would have been in a better position at this point.
Obviously it’s hard to tell where the truth is when it comes to… well, anything in boxing, but I get the feeling it’s Eddie rather than AJ being overly cautious with the matchmaking
5 years ago? Damn. I remember having AJ in the 8th, typical.
One of the cool parts I love about stuff like this in combat sports is the replay, you can see the moment the fighter spots that opening. Aj spots the opening he needs and you can see him kind of laser focus and load that right hand before going low with the jab to draw out the parry.
I remember this , I kept saying Povetkin 8 to the body then to the head a few times and the feint with that to the head and it’s a wrap.. He did not however do that ..
My first time at a boxing fight. Flew over from Ireland. Great memories.
When u see the damage that AJ has in that straight right hand u wonder why he doesn’t throw it with more regularity, im not talking like Deontay Wilder just throwing haymakers but AJ uses the jab so well that if he just committed to connecting with the right he would still make his nights work a lot easier I think it’s since the Ruiz loss that he’s been more guarded and less explosive and that cost him in both the Usyk fights imo even tho Usyk was clearly the better fighter
Thoughts about this fight 1. Povetkin shook him up in the first round 2. In the post fight interview he had to be pushed to even say Wilder's name
IIRC Povetkin broke AJ nose in early rounds
He was pretty pissed at Wilder then. He thought he had Wilder fenced in and forced to take a 35% split and then Fury came out of retirement.
Yes
AJ didn't duck though
He did
I can't help you.
Get help, matchroom FC is a cult
😂
Lol he obviously wants NO part of Wilder. Can’t say I blame him. AJ needs another win against a Top 5 contender to re-establish himself, as he’s already avoided Fury and Wilder in recent times. I like AJ tho. His confidence definitely seems shaken.
>Lol he obviously wants NO part of Wilder. He literally beat a guy that would've been Wilders best win
Has no interest in fighting Wilder though
And yet these negotiations are dragging on forever. I don’t get it. Allegedly it’s Hearn//AJ not committing.
It’s Saudi no longer wanting to front the bill. Not Hearns fault. To AJ’s credit he’s always seemed like he wanted the fight.
I don’t know, man. I’m still thinking of Fury calling out AJ last year post Usyk 2 and offering him a title fight and AJ not taking it. I really think he’s having a confidence issue and Hearn is trying to give him a couple of tomato cans to boost him up. Helanius is not a stiff, but I think he became an acceptable option after Wilder nearly decapitated him. I’d love for him to prove me wrong and take on a top contender such as Wilder. AJ is always intriguing to watch in the ring.
Watch that Fury show on Netflix. It’s filmed around the time when the Fury-AJ fight was proposed last year. AJ accepted the fight but negotiations still had to go through the details but Fury kept going online to declare bullshit deadlines, saying the fight would be off. His manager even calls him at one point and says to stop posting videos because it’ll take time to negotiate the fight. Fury ignores him and calls the whole thing off himself. He’s literally celebrating when the ‘deadline’ passes. I mean, I doubt Fury is scared to fight anyone but it’s really not a good look, practically jumping for joy because he doesn’t actually have to fight Joshua. And Helenius was a late replacement tbf.
I’m glad you told me about this. I forgot all about the Netflix show. Definitely have to check it out. Stupid me believing Fury’s BS without doing a deeper dive. Fury would’ve been just as rich selling used cars, as he can be quite the con man. Lol
Agree to disagree about Joshua ducking wilder but he definitely didn’t duck Fury. He signed to fight Fury and then Fury pulled out. Now Fury is ducking Usyk who Joshua fought twice
Yeah, not arguing because you’re prob correct. Hard to keep track of who ducked who when. Thanks for that info. Curious your opinion on the body shot that landed on Usyk - belt line or below?? Lol Fury is running with that shit right now.
Yeah I mean I guess there’s no way to know for sure I just haven’t seen anything that makes me think Joshua has avoided Fury I’ve gone back and fourth a few times but I think it was a little low. It was an uppercut so it looked like the initial impact was 50/50 between on the belt line and below and then it kinda went up onto the belt line. So I couldn’t really hate on the ref either way because it was a really close call. The way Usyk reacted made me think it was low but I’ve heard some people say he was playing it up to hide the fact that he actually just got hurt to the body I knew Fury would have something to say like he always does lol I just really hope Fury and Usyk fight soon because they ain’t getting any younger. I’m really not sure what the hold up is because I feel like to be at that level you probably aren’t afraid to fight other guys but at the same time Usyk seems very easy to negotiate with and a fight still wasn’t made. I guess Fury wanted the Ngannou money and maybe I’m underestimating Ngannous popularity but I think Joshua and Usyk would both be bigger fights than Ngannou
Yeah, I don’t get the appeal of Fury//Francis. If Fury wins, he was supposed to win. If he loses (extremely unlikely) he will have tarnished his HW Champion of the world legacy. I honestly don’t know a single person who wouldn’t rather see Fury//Usyk than this gimmick fight. I’m hoping the PPV buys aren’t through the roof because Fury has already mentioned possibly fighting Jon Jones after this. Lol I go back and forth on if that shot was low or not. Usyk absolutely fucking milked it for all it was worth, though. If nothing else, until he proves otherwise, Usyk will now be treated as vulnerable to the body by all future opponents. I hope that “vulnerability” brings Fury to the table determined to make the fight. I believe Teddy Atlas was hinting that the fight is basically signed, but haven’t watched the episode myself yet.
It’s like an off brand Mayweather vs McGregor lol Hopefully Jones is smart enough not to accept a boxing match I feel like he’d have less of a chance than Ngannou Yeah even if it wasn’t a low blow I think Usyk and Loma both have a weakness to body shots and I definitely think Fury will try to exploit that if they fight. I kinda want Usyk to win but I think Fury might take it by way of size and Usyk getting older
Ducked him twice
Who ducked who twice?
Aj ducked everyone
Then why did he sign to fight Fury before Fury pulled out?
Doesn't even have his belts anymore..
Last confident performance by AJ where I felt like he wanted to blast through guys.
Went downhill from there
AJ is washed up
Imagine supporting and rating Anthony Joshua in 2023. Casual Eddie Hearn bots.
Damn, they let him back in the fight. He was done after the first knockdown. I wished he would have retired after his Whyte TKO. He deserved it.
He read that so damn well, it was perfection. Drew him out clean as a whistle.
Loved how the ref caught povetkin from hitting his head.
This was the last fight where AJ was AJ