Sergey Lapin reveals what Anthony Joshua told Oleksandr Usyk after the title loss.
Anthony Joshua was trapped by Oleksandr Usyk’s impeccable movement and southpaw style when the two locked horns in September. After a full-length battle, Usyk earned a comfortable win on the scorecards and handed ‘AJ’ his second defeat. The massive upset snatched away Joshua’s titles in the division and made his re-match a must-win bout.
Despite the lopsided setback, Anthony Joshua appeared confident about beating Usyk in a re-match right after their first fight ended.
Oleksandr Usyk’s manager Sergey Lapin connected with the media and revealed several insights from the first fight between AJ and Usyk. He also shed light on the words the duo exchanged at the end.
Lapin said, “To be honest, in the fight with Usyk, I saw the best version of Joshua in years. Joshua is strong-willed and has character. All belts were at stake, and he went all-in, but lost. I don’t understand at all why most boxing skeptics say Joshua’s wrong strategy was the explanation for Usyk’s victory.”
“This victory was not just a lucky blow, as in the fight with Ruiz, it was a victory by all criteria. As for the immediate rematch, right after the end of the 12th round, I heard Anthony say: “Hey, Alex, I know how to beat you, I want a rematch”. Now he will try to take back his title. We are definitely looking forward to a very cool rematch.”
Anthony Joshua sat down with IFL TV after the fight and expressed his opinion about his defeat. He vowed to offer a much more violent side in the re-match to take back his lost world titles.
Anthony Joshua vs Oleksandr Usyk was an absolute shock. Following a KO win against Kubrat Pulev, Joshua had ample time to prepare for Oleksandr Usyk. He seemed the favorite fighter and was confident about handing Usyk his maiden pro-defeat. However, ‘The Cat’ ran circles around ‘AJ’ and stayed out of reach whilst dominating the Brit in what was a shocker to many fans in the stadium.
Joshua absorbed several hits from the other end and was at the end of his gas tank in the final round. On the other hand, Usyk looked fresh and kept to his game plan till the last gong.
Given what fans saw in the first fight, it may be tough to believe Joshua’s vow to get even or even Lapin’s words that Joshua was at his “best version.”