Joshua made a lot of mistakes in his defeat against Daniel Dubois that he can’t afford to do against Jake in their eight-rounder. Attempting to slug the way he used to in the early part of his career won’t work at 36 with all the miles on him.
“Everything that I’ve watched the greats do, I’m just going to do exactly what I need to do. I am going to be the best version of myself,” said Anthony Joshua to Sky Sports Boxing about what his mindset is going into Friday’s fight with Jake Paul.
Thinking about what the elite fighters would do in a certain situation could make Joshua unfocused during the Jake fight. If he’s constantly thinking, ‘What would these top fighters in the past do,’ he could get hurt. The reality is, Joshua isn’t “great” material. Trying to fight like them wouldn’t be a good idea, given his limitations with his chin and stamina.
There’s a big difference between the greats in the past and Joshua. It’s hard to compare AJ with the top heavyweights from the past era, and it would be foolish for him to try to mimic their game at this late stage of his career. What’s missing for Anthony is his ability to take hard shots. The top fighters from the past could take a punch without going down.
“I am going to do everything that I want to do, and no one’s going to stop me,” said Joshua. “What I’m going to do personally is be at the highest point of self.”
AJ needs to hold back on trying “to do everything’ he wants against Paul, and fight within his physical boundaries. If he were younger, with an iron chin, he could try different things by being more aggressive.
The best style for Joshua would be the one used by Wladimir Klitschko when he teamed up with Emanuel Steward and became defensive. That approach would be ideal for preserving his game, working within the limits of his conditioning and punch resistance.
Joshua faces Jake Paul in an eight-round fight on Netflix this Friday, December 19th, at the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida.
