Anthony Joshua will continue to garner criticism unless he regains his lost heavyweight belts against Oleksandr Usyk, which now seems to be quite of a task for the Briton. Despite having adequate time to prepare, Joshua’s 12-round war against Usyk didn’t work in the former’s favor. AJ failed to deliver on his knockout game and fell prey to Usyk’s tactical movement, getting poleaxed for all the rounds in his hometown of London.

A rematch is reportedly in talks to happen somewhere in early 2022. But not a lot of people have their faith in Anthony Joshua’s resurrection. Mexican heavyweight Chris Arreola is one of them who recently ridiculed AJ and detailed what went wrong for him in the first fight.

In a chat with ES News, Arreola said, “AJ to me, personally, he looks like a person who is gun shy, and scared to getting hit again.”

Chris Arreola suffered his last loss against Andy Ruiz Jr., the same opponent who handed Anthony Joshua his first professional loss. While AJ didn’t see the distance against Ruiz in the first fight, it left a massive dent in his legacy. Nevertheless, he rebounded in an immediate rematch and took back his title.

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The second loss of his pro-career against Oleksandr Usyk will demand a similar reaction from Joshua in the rematch. But unlike Ruiz Jr, Usyk possesses different fighting skills and can be problematic to be decoded. Henceforth, Anthony Joshua can’t channelize the same game plan that helped him beat ‘The Destroyer’ back in 2019.

Anthony Joshua is at the most important phase of his career

When Joshua lost to Ruiz Jr, several people called it a fluke and didn’t credit ‘The Destroyer’ for his achievement. However, Usyk revealed the flaws of Joshua’s game plan in September 2021. And hit him from variant angles to snatch the titles. At this point, Anthony Joshua can not suffer another loss or he will lose his top position in the heavyweight division.

Usyk’s entry as a heavyweight champion has clearly shaken the structure of the division. The potential AJ VS Fury blockbuster fight is not valid anymore. While Joshua shall avenge the defeat at any cost, a lot of factors regarding his fame and success are relying on the outcome of the fight.

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Who do you see winning the rematch? Oleksandr Usyk or Anthony Joshua?