Joshua v Wlad - Time to get real about the "Superfight"..

Hoping you guys have a great 2017..

1988....38 yr old top class technician and Legend Larry Holmes coming off a "Win" against Spinks and a 20 month layoff....Gets creamed off young kid dynamite Tyson in a "decent sized" preamble to a Superfight with Spinks....Doesn't come near to winning a round..

2017.....41 year old one dimensional ...Wlad is coming off a bottle-less loss against the limited other Tyson...Fury.. and an 18 month layoff to fight the modern kid dynamite in a "Superfight" which will fill a stadium and more apparently....

Being sold a dud me thinks.....Tyson v Spinks all over again.....

Like Sanders..Josh just needs to punch straight at......Straight line Wlad..

Hope I'm wrong......But I doubt it.....

Mismatch....Won't be buying this Josh offering either...0-4....

I am 100% with you Truss - I said almost exactly the same thing in the other AJ/WK thread. This won't go past the halfway point. Think Wlad will take some heavy punishment in this fight - AJ is not afraid to punch people and Wlad doesn't like to be hit. Something is going to give and I think that once he's eaten a couple of big rights, Klitschko's good to go. KO5.

If Joshua drops the IBF belt if he beats Klitschko then Haye vs Pulev wouldn't be a bad fight for that title

Yup everything is building up to another Wembley mismatch against Haye and then finally a unification against the other paper champ Wilder.

Pity the 22 opponents since Wald's last loss didn't know all they had to do was punch straight. Could've made for a much more interesting last 10 years or so.

Though I guess glad Fury didn't get the message either.....

TopHat24/7 wrote:Pity the 22 opponents since Wald's last loss didn't know all they had to do was punch straight.  Could've made for a much more interesting last 10 years or so.

Though I guess glad Fury didn't get the message either.....

Pity they were so awful it was beyond them...For once we agree..

Hopefully it doesn't end too early either way (think there is a genuine chance, albeit small, of Josh getting ko'd) as my mate is still looking into sourcing a couple of tickets!

I'm in the minority I think Klitschko might pull this one off. I know sparring is sparring but all reports mention Wlad absolutely boxed the lugs off Joshua and put him in his place, either Klitschko has went right back in the betting or Joshua has improved that much in 3 years. Massive step up for Joshua and I think he'll have all the trouble he can handle in this one.

Cheers, Rodders.

Think Josh will struggle from having never fought anywhere near this level. For all the 'straight' business, AJ is a much more straight forward prospect than Fury.

Fury had almost no advantages on paper but totally bamboozled Wlad and destroyed him mentally.

AJ doesn't have anything that Fury did.

Be interesting to see where the odds lie.....

Wlad legitimately has a weak chin a la Khan (both knocked out badly 3 times) so although he maybe be better in some departments, i cannot see him not being hit and hurt over the course of 12 rounds and AJ not finishing it.

If Wlad was gun shire at 39 against an average puncher in Fury, i cannot see how he won't be at 42, 18 months latter against AJ.

Being tentative will be help AJ, IMO and Wlad will not apply any pressure on AJ, giving him space and time to land his own.

Think AJ finishes within 6 rounds with relative ease.

He averaged 14 punches a round against Fury....He was scared of getting hit off a guy that doesn't punch as nearly as hard as Joshua..

He'll have been out of the ring 18 months on fight night..He's 40 plus and he is a straight line operator...

Anyone who thinks this isn't a mismatch like Tyson and the much better skilled and younger Holmes...Please don't bet money you can't afford to lose.

F..k all to do with straight lines. Wlad probably loses this fight because he is old and inactive.

Good timing for Joshua.

But let us be real for a second. If Wlad fights aggressively (he most likely won't) he could do what Thompson did to Price. Aj looks the part, but he's begging to be hit. He's lucky he's fighting Wlad and not Vitali Imo.

Let's not get carried away with Joshua. I know opinion differs on how good Wlad is/was on here, but he is stratospheres above anything Joshua has fought. The one time Joshua fought a guy with a bit of ambition about him in Whyte he stiffened his legs up. Everyone talks about Wlad's chin but truth is we know little about Joshua's. What we do know though is Wlad is extremely good at keeping his out of the way of punches. Maybe Joshua's chin is better than the Whyte fight and he has defensive abilities he has thus far not needed to show, but the idea this is a foregone conclusion or a fight you'd pick with any great confidence is not one I can get on board with.

He's not stratospheres anymore and never was in my opinion.......He's an old one dimensional guy that threw 14 punches a round against Fury and was scared to engage...

If he was scared of getting hit by Fury heaven knows what he will be like in March.

He'd have been made for Bruno.....In his prime let alone at 42.......He fought a straight puncher in Cory and was helpless because he knows nothing but straight line mauling..

Fury is average......He won because Wlad didn't fancy it..

Fancy having to pay for Wlad after he lost a stinker last time out.

Never PPV

By your logic neither is Khan and Brook.

Chinless hasbeen gets sparked by fresh, stronger, hungrier fighter. I'll pay for both, f..k it.

It might pan out as an easy night for Joshua but I struggle to see what generates so much conviction.

I cant really call it with any conviction. With so many unknown factors at play you can make a case for any outcome. Joshua looks too short priced at the bookies for my liking, all things considered. So I would be more tempted by the odds on Klitschko. I also think there is more value in the fight going longer than an early, easy finish for either boxer.

Im no fan on the Sky / Matchroom ppv model but this fight intrigues me. I think its an important fight. A loss for Joshua would be horrible for the future of the heavyweight division if its brightest prospect couldnt beat a 42 year old Klitschko who I have never thought was a great heavyweight himself. This is the kind of fight that should be the standard for ppv though. A big fight. An important fight. And a fight in my mind anyway where the result is far from certain.

Even if truss is right and Joshua blows Wlad out of the water Wlad is still by far the best person he has faced. However the slating that Wlad took after his dismal performance against fury I think he will at least come out and throw more. This should help Joshua land a shot and if he does I think it's all over. Either Wlad will get knocked out or he will taste the power and retreat into his shell. The flip side is that the first time Joshua has been caught clean was by a non existent puncher and he was rattled. If Wlad connects then I think Joshua is going down and the question would be can he get up?

TRUSSMAN66 wrote:He's not stratospheres anymore and never was in my opinion.......He's an old one dimensional guy that threw 14 punches a round against Fury and was scared to engage...

If he was scared of getting hit by Fury heaven knows what he will be like in March.

He'd have been made for Bruno.....In his prime let alone at 42.......He fought a straight puncher in Cory and was helpless because he knows nothing but straight line mauling..

Fury is average......He won because Wlad didn't fancy it..

Fancy having to pay for Wlad after he lost a stinker last time out.

Never PPV

Truss its a complete polar opposite matchup. Fury was absolutely awful to box against, Wlad isnt as fluid at 42 and needs to set his feet, Fury's team had a magnificent gameplan which kept Wlad off balance and basically feinted him out the fight. Joshua boxes in straight lines and gives you a chance - he could well be the business but I have a feeling Wlad can negate him early and then we'll see if Joshua can really swim.

Cheers, Rodders

Fury wasn't a big puncher and Wlad wouldn't commit..

He's been out for 18 months and is 42.....

Bruno v Coetzee me thinks....

Don't buy a ticket Rod...Take your Mrs out and treat her instead...


Make a change from me doing it..

did wlad not commit against Fury because he was scared of being punched or because he was just old? The wlad fight before fury against Jennings and wlad looked old in that fight too and didn't throw that much.

I will be betting on klitschko tho, best opponent AJ has faced is White and that's basically domestic level opponent.