"I am expecting to see round 13" - Buddy McGirt Breaks down Anthony Joshua vs. Oleksander Usyk rematch
Boxing trainer Buddy McGirt has broken down how he believes the rematch between Oleksander Usyk and Anthony Joshua will go down. Joshua and Usyk will meet this Saturday on August 15 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
McGirt said:
“I am expecting to see round 13 on. The fight, you know the way that it ended continuing, just seeing if Joshua can make the adjustments from that point on. If it's not broken can't fix it, just sit there and add a little more to it, I think it is going to be a very interesting fight, I think it will be a better fight than the first one.” [sic]
Watch the interview here:
In round 12 of their first fight, Oleksander Usyk appeared to hurt Anthony Joshua. Throughout the twelfth round, both fighters were trading shots, with Usyk appearing to land harder during the exchanges. With around 20 seconds to go in the fight, Usyk landed a left hand that wobbled ‘AJ’. Following the shot, Joshua backed down and went towards the ropes. Usyk then threw a barrage of punches with nothing coming back from the then-champion.
If there had been 20 or even 10 seconds longer in the round, it is likely that the fight may have ended up via stoppage. Joshua looked hurt as the challenger was landing unanswered punches. Adam Smith on commentary for Sky Sports exclaimed that Joshua was on the verge of being stopped, and implied that he was saved by the bell.
As such, McGirt believes that Usyk and his team should take inspiration from the first fight. Joshua, however, must make changes, according to the former "Boxing Writers Association Trainer of the year."
Anthony Joshua will make adjustments.
Anthony Joshua has expressed that he needs a different gameplan coming into the rematch. The training team for the second fight will be different as Rob McCracken has been replaced by Robert Garcia.
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Garcia has spoken about how important it is for Joshua to use his superior physical attributes in the rematch. 'AJ' is a naturally bigger man than Usyk and has greater punching power. McGirt believes that Garcia is a master at coaching his fighters to go to war, and that is what Joshua needs to do in the rematch.
Joshua has 22 KOs in his 24 wins, and using an aggressive style might be crucial against the Ukrainian.