Anthony Joshua has been told by former rival Andy Ruiz Jr that he must be more aggressive if he is to beat Oleksandr Usyk in their rematch.
The British star is expected to face Usyk in Saudi Arabia on July 23 in a bid to reclaim his unified heavyweight titles. He was comprehensively outboxed by the tricky Ukrainian in London last year and faces a huge uphill battle to turn around his second career defeat.
However the first man to inflict defeat on Joshua, Ruiz wants Usyk to inflict a third career defeat on Joshua due to being a "man of Christ." "I think Joshua could pull it off,” Ruiz Jr told ESNews. I think he needs to go in there and be aggressive, just like how he was from the beginning.
“Not let them dictate the fight. As long as he’s doing the pressure, throwing a lot of combinations, not letting Usyk get comfortable and throwing his little slick shots, I think he can win. But Usyk is a man of Christ, so I’m gonna be going for him.” Joshua's first defeat came against Ruiz back in 2019 where he was brutally stopped during his American debut.
However his rematch plan to outbox the Mexican worked to perfection with his slick display helping him outpoint his rival to regain his titles in Saudi Arabia. Joshua was set to meet Fury in an undisputed clash last summer, but was forced to accept a mandatory defence against Usyk which he lost in dominant fashion.
His tactics were heavily scrutinised after the fight while his trainer Rob McCracken was blamed by several experts for Joshua's 'gun-shy' performance. Joshua began a new quest to find a new trainer and is currently working with coach Angel Fernandez who is preparing him to face Usyk for a second time.
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The Ukrainian was forced to delay the sequel while he focused on helping his country defend against Russian invasion, but later elected to return to training to prepare to defend his titles. Heavyweight champion Fury's father John has also backed Joshua to gain his revenge and believes a change of plan should be the key to victory.
“AJ has been beat but he’s got a terrible habit of bouncing back and I fancy him to get the return”, John Fury told iFL TV. “Truthfully, he’s capable of being a three-time world champion, he’s got that about him and, believe me, with a little bit more oil in his camp and the right people around him, I think he can do it.
“In his case, he just had the wrong plan from the off, didn’t he? If he changes his plan around and uses what he’s got to his benefit, I don’t see a problem. I hope he does beat Usyk, I really do, I’m rooting for him,” he added. I’d be sick if Usyk won. Nothing against Usyk, he’s a great guy but my heart lies with the Watford man. If AJ can win, wild horses couldn’t keep Tyson in retirement.”
