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Liam Smith believes Anthony Joshua has a good chance of avenging his defeat to Oleksandr Usyk if he uses the right tactics. He believes that 'AJ' has to use his size and not try to outbox the Ukrainian.
Joshua will face Usyk in a rematch on August 20 in Jeddah and will attempt to become a three-time world champion. The pair first met in the ring last September at the Tottenham Stadium in London. The Ukrainian outboxed and dominated 'AJ' over 12 rounds to claim a convincing unanimous decision.
Watch the full fight replay of Joshua vs Usyk:
Following his loss, the Brit was criticized for using the wrong strategy against Usyk. Joshua tried to outbox the former undisputed cruiserweight champion instead of using his distinct physical advantage. This led to him firing long-term coach Robert McCracken and recently bringing in the vastly experienced Robert Garcia.
Here's what Smith said in an interview with Pro Boxing Fans:
"Very interesting, I think it all depends on what Joshua turns up. I think if Joshua, turns up, puts it on Usyk, it makes Usyk fight three minutes, two a half minutes each round. Then he's got a massive chance...If he tries to outbox Usyk like he did last time, you can't outbox Usyk. There both the same size, Usyk is a big favourite... Joshua's got to use his size."
Watch the full interview:
Anthony Joshua acknowledges that he must do more to beat Usyk
Anthony Joshua has accepted the criticism he received from the first bout with Usyk and is determined to produce a much better performance.
Here's what Joshua said in a recent interview with Fight Hub TV:
"Do more, do more not less, do more. Do more win the fight, do more, do more, do more."
Watch the full interview:
Joshua suffered his professional defeat to Andy Ruiz back in 2019, when he was dropped four times and eventually stopped in the seventh round. However, 'AJ' bounced back later that year to beat Ruiz via decision and recover his belts.
Regardless, Usyk is ranked as the number 2 pound-for-pound fighter in the world by Ring Magazine and is still undefeated. So many believe 'AJ' has a much harder task this time round to get his revenge.
