On The Watch “It’s All About Anthony Joshua vs Oleksandr Usyk”

IBO/IBF/WBA/WBO Heavyweight Challenge

Tonight’s Matchroom Main Event at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, England was a disappointing outcome in my eyes when Heavyweight Champion Anthony Joshua (24-2, 22 Kos) succumbed to the former Cruiserweight Unified Champion turned Heavyweight Oleksandr Usyk (19-0, 13 Kos) by a unanimous decision on home turf. Unbelievable!!

Usyk, the former Unified Cruiserweight Champion walked it like he talked it and moved up to the Heavyweight Division and after only two Heavyweight bouts under his belt dethroned the No. 1 Unified Heavyweight Champion Anthony Joshua by handing him a schooling display of Boxing 101.

AJ the hulking Heavyweight had his moments throughout the bout but severely neglected to impose his own physical attributes when needed. AJ let the smaller man in Usyk have his own way with him inside that squared circle and it cost him dearly round after round.

Usyk’s “game plan” was simple but effective. He boxed and moved for 12 rounds and accumulated enough points to outduel the gun-shy Heavyweight Champion Anthony Joshua. Usyk the visible smaller man inside that squared circle had absolutely no fear in his eyes and proceeded to put hands on AJ all night handing him the most embarrassing loss that could have easily been avoided had AJ presented a better effort inside that squared circle.

Real Talk, AJ got his ass handed to him tonight hands down. After 12 full rounds of action the Judges scored it 117-112, 116-112, 115-113 all in favor for the New Unified Heavyweight Champion Oleksandr Usyk.

With Usyk now being the New Unified Heavyweight Champion, the Heavyweight Division has once again taken a massive blow, leaving AJ contemplating his next move. There’s going to be a lot of soul searching on this one for AJ cause this loss right here is a game changer.

Congratulation to Usyk for conquering yet again another Division in an emphatic fashion.

Although a rematch clause is most likely to be executed by AJ, I personally think he needs to re-evaluate that option because another performance like this could well be detrimental to the rest of his career.

Just my thoughts.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Joe Joyce vs Carlos Takam”

Heavyweight Showdown

Joe Joyce (13-0, 12 Kos) walked it like he talked it tonight when he stopped Carlos Takam (39-6-1, 28 Kos) as he predicted, in the sixth round at the SSE Arena in Wembley, England.

Watching Joe fight tonight wasn’t pretty but he did the job. Takam came in willing and able to trouble Joe who made it hard for Takam with his size and length but props still need to be given to Takam for pressuring Joe enough to actually winning rounds in my eyes.

As big as Joe was inside that squared circle, Takam’s movement and quicker hands did find a home landing on Joe quite frequently. Takam had the right “game plan” going for him but the pace he had to maintain to keep Joe from landing was visibly taxing him as the rounds were going.

It was only a matter of time before the “Juggernaut” caught him and seconds into the sixth round Joe did just that when he connected with a heavy left hook to Takam’s dome that rocked him so hard that he started Crip walking on shaky legs leaving himself open to a series of unanswered punches that hastily prompted the referee to stop the bout.

Takam did not agree with the stoppage and rightfully so since he was still standing but judging by the way Joe was picking up steam in the sixth round, the inevitable ending was bound to happen.

As slow and predictable as Joe looked inside that squared circle tonight, one thing for sure is he carries some serious power in those hands and when he connects you definitely feel it.

With this win, Joe continues his winning streak and maintains his WBO mandatory position to challenge the winner of the Anthony Joshua IBF/IBO/WBA/WBO Heavyweight Champion and Oleksandr Usyk future bout.

Until then, congratulations Joe on another great win.

Blaze

On the Watch “It’s All About Andy Ruiz Jr. vs Chris Arreola”

Heavyweight Throwdown

Last night’s PBC/Fox PPV Main Event between former Heavyweight Champion Andy Ruiz Jr. (34-2, 22 Kos) and Chris Arreola (38-7-1, 33 Kos) at Dignity Health Sports Park, Carson, California, was a dramatic bout from start to finish. Real Talk!

A visibly slimmed down Andy walked in the squared circle feeling himself and thinking this was going to be easy work and underestimated his opponent. He was careless in the second round when he got caught flush on the dome and dropped for a surprising quick 8 count that kept him shook for the remaining of a tough round.

Chris didn’t come to lay down and he fought a smart fight and actually hurt Ruiz again in the third round. Andy kept it cool and took a few rounds to shake it off and then proceeded to box his way through the remaining rounds applying some good pressure with his combinations.

Chris proved to be tough as expected and made Andy work and respect the veteran who was in front of him inside that squared circle.

As good as Andy looked physically inside that squared circle, he seemed a little off to me and had to dig really deep to survive all 12 rounds of this bout. Both combatants were visibly tired as their punch output slowed down in the later rounds.

That being said, both warriors put on a show that did not disappoint. At the conclusion of this bout the Judges scored it 117-110, 118-109, 118-109 unanimously for Andy Ruiz.

Listen, I don’t have a problem with Andy walking away with the win but the score cards do not reflect what transpired inside that squared circle. These Judges did Chris dirty on this one. Hands Down!

Congratulations to Andy for pulling off this though win.

Blaze

On the Watch “It’s All About Dereck Chisora vs Joseph Parker”

Vacant WBO Inter-Continental Heavyweight Title

Tonight’s Matchroom/DAZN Main Event between Joseph Parker (29-2, 21 Kos) and Dereck Chisora (32-11, 23 kos) at the Manchester Arena in Manchester, England was a tough outing for both combatants.

Straight from the jump in the first 7 seconds of round 1, Chisora caught Parker flush on the side of the head for a quick knockdown and an 8 count to start the fight that proceeded to go back and forth from this point on.

Chisora was aggressive out the gate pressuring Parker who kept his cool, defending off the onslaught coming his way. Parker had to fight fire with fire to establish himself because things weren’t looking good as the rounds were piling up.

Parker’s jab eventually started to affect Chisora who clearly was looking tired from pressing the action so much. As the rounds were accumulating Parker needed to dig deep and battle of a tired looking Chisora who still kept on coming forward throwing bombs from left to right.

This bout may not have been the prettiest of fights out there but Chisora definitely made it a tough one for Parker all night. After 12 rounds of hard-hitting action the Judges scored it 115-113 for Chisora while the other two judges scored it 116-111 and 115-113 in favor of Parker. Personally, I wouldn’t have been mad at a draw but that 116-111 is out of pocket.

With this win Joseph picks up the Vacant WBO Inter-Continental Heavyweight Belt and repositions himself as a key player in the Heavyweight Division but truth be told, Parker is going to have to step his game up even more if he has any aspirations of recapturing one of the full Heavyweight Titles from the two Champions right now. Real Talk!

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Anthony Joshua vs Kubrat Pulev”

IBF/IBO/WBA/WBO Heavyweight Challenge

Last night’s Heavyweight Bout inside the SSE Arena, Wembley in London, UK was a homecoming fight for Unified Heavyweight Champion Anthony Joshua (24-1, 22 Kos) and Kubrat Pulev (28-2, 14 Kos) that did not disappoint.

AJ looked good last night, focussed, assertive, poised and did not deviate from the “game plan“ at hand. His jab and uppercut were key last night and he handled his opponent the right way, dropping Pulev four times throughout the bout to a convincing stoppage in the 9th round.

Pulev, a worthy opponent, tried to keep up with AJ but was simply met with a better, complete and motivated fighter in AJ. Anthony worked the ring well and controlled every round while wearing Pulev down.

Kubrat couldn’t put any type of a convincing offence together long enough to deter Anthony who showed much improvement in his repertoire. Pulev showed some durability at times throughout the bout but Anthony’s size and power proved to be too much.

The “End Game” was inevitable and in the 9th round when AJ connected with a vicious strong and accurate right hand to Kubrat’s jaw that put him down indefinitely for the 10 count.

With this emphatic win by AJ, he now retains his IBF/IBO/WBA “Super” and WBO Heavyweight Titles. This was a much-needed win for Anthony last night. He needed to make a statement of Pulev and show the Heavyweight Division that he is nothing to play with inside that squared circle. The road to undisputed is still the mission at hand.

Congratulations AJ on finishing this turbulent year 2020 in a strong fashion.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Daniel Dubois vs Joe Joyce”

Heavyweight British Throwdown

Tonight’s highly anticipated British showdown between “Dynamite” Daniel Dubois (15-1, 14 Kos) and Joe Joyce “The Juggernaut” (12-0, 11 Kos) at Church House, Westminister in London was an exciting bout from start to finish. Real talk!

Tonight, Joe silenced all the naysayers by forcing Dubois to gracefully bow down by taking a knee in the tenth round. Joe had his jab working Dubois all night and definitely made a dent in Dubois’ armour when he severely damaged and closed Dubois’ left eye shut.

Dubois came out the gate and tried to physically assert himself with his heavy punches. Normally his presence alone would have deterred his opponents but tonight Dubois was met with a formidable and durable adversary and couldn’t get by Joe’s steady and accurate jab successfully.

That said, it was a competitive and interesting bout with both warriors going at it hard but tonight the young lion met his match when fatigue and a worrisome bummed eye prevented him to continue in the 10th round and got counted out. I personally never anticipated Dubois quitting in any of his fights but only a fighter can truly know when enough is enough.

This is a major win for Joyce who was confident from the time this bout got announced. Experience, patience and a very good chin is what carried Joe over for this victory. Joe is steadily creeping up the Heavyweight ladder and now holds the British, Commonwealth and European Titles but best of all, is he now moves one step closer to a world title opportunity in 2021.

Congratulations Joe on a very convincing win. Job well done.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All about Oleksandr Usyk vs Dereck Chisora”

Heavyweight Challenge

Tonight’s Heavyweight Main Event between Oleksandr Usyk (18-0, 13 Kos) and Dereck Chisora (32-10, 23 Kos) at the SSE Arena at Wembley wasn’t pretty but definitely a tougher challenge this time around for Usyk.

Dereck came out the gate aggressive pouring some heavy punches that caught Usyk off guard and had him back peddling trying to figure Chisora out for the first three rounds. Dereck spent a lot of energy trying to slow Usyk down in the early rounds and actually had some success with his approach but as the rounds wore on Usyk started to box and move and connecting on Chisora with some very good accuracy.

Chisora continued to press the action as much as he could but Usyk’s style and movement was definitely giving Chisora issues that caused his output to slow down. Tonight, Usyk was unquestionably in a tough bout but was still able touch up his opponent at will.

Chisora stood his ground as much as he could but simply couldn’t keep up with the movement and the output that Usyk was using to tire him out. As the later rounds creeped up Dereck became lazy and sluggish which made it easier for Usyk to dominate the later rounds in a stronger fashion.

After 12 full rounds of action the Judges scored it 117-112, 115-113, 115-113 in favor of Oleksandr Usyk.

Personally, this wasn’t Usyk’s best outing to date but for only his second fight at Heavyweight, Oleksandr has showed signs of being able to hang with the Big Boys.

With this win Oleksandr moves one step closer to a WBO mandatory showdown with IBF/IBO/WBO/WBA Super Heavyweight Champion Anthony Joshua (23-1, 21 Kos).

Can’t wait to see them two duke it out inside that squared circle. Until then, congratulations Oleksandr on your latest victory.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Andy Ruiz Jr. vs Anthony Joshua”

World Heavyweight Championship Challenge

In a beautiful display of boxing at the open-air arena in Diriyah, Saudi Arabia, Anthony Joshua (23-1, 21 Kos) successfully regained his crown by defeating Unified IBF, IBO, WBA and WBO Heavyweight Champion of the World Andy Ruiz Jr. (33-2, 22 Kos) by unanimous decision.

A slimmed down and focussed AJ showed up tonight to silence all the naysayers who counted him out and rewrite the wrong of June 1st when he suffered his first humiliating defeat at the hands of Andy Ruiz Jr. at Madison Square Garden.

From round 1 to round 12, AJ executed the “game plan” to a “T” and never wavered from it. AJ stayed long and tall, moved and jabbed his way to a unanimous decision. The Judges scored it 118-110, 118-110 and 119-109 all in favor of Anthony Joshua.

AJ boxed and maintained his composure throughout the entire bout. Andy couldn’t close the distance or administer any type of sustained offence. AJ ‘s movement was clearly frustrating Andy as the rounds wore on.

That being said, the naysayers will still have some negative things to say about AJ ‘s win but truth be told, AJ dominated Andy in such a convincing fashion that cannot be ignored by his peers.

Hate him or love him, Anthony Joshua has now regained his rightful position in the Heavyweight Division and is now a Two-Time IBF, IBO, WBA and WBO Unified Heavyweight Champion of the World.

Congratulations Anthony on a job well done. Now on to the New Year 2020!

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Deontay Wilder vs Luis Ortiz 2″

WBC Heavyweight Rematch Challenge

Heavyweight Luis Ortiz (31-1, 26 Kos) has been campaigning for a rematch with WBC Heavyweight Champion Deontay Wilder (41-0-1, 40 Kos) since their last competitive tussle back in March 3, 2018 and his request has officially been announced.

Ortiz will be looking to avenge his one and only loss to date on November 23, 2019 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Although their first encounter ended with Ortiz getting knocked out in the 10th round, everybody in the boxing community knows that Ortiz gave Deontay the business that night and came extremely close to upsetting the WBC Heavyweight Champion. If it wasn’t for Luis running out of gas in the later rounds, the end result could have easily been in favour of “King Kong”. Real Talk!

That being said, we can’t front on Wilder, Dude did drop and stop Ortiz and we all known Ortiz is no one to play with inside that squared circle. However, having shared the ring with Ortiz, Wilder should be better prepared this time around for any possible onslaught Ortiz may have hidden in his arsenal. The “Boogeyman” fear factor will have no effect on the “Bronze Bomber”. Dude got his weight up and his confidence is already at 100! Nuff Said!

Peeps in the boxing community are claiming that Ortiz is now showing his age inside that squared circle but still being avoided by his peers. Personally, age aside, Ortiz’s skill set is superior to most sh*t talkers in the Heavyweight Division. That said I’m not ready to pull the plug on Ortiz just yet. He campaigned for the rematch with Wilder now he’s gotta make it count and show us fans that he can talk it like he walks it. Duplicating that infamous round 7 back in March won’t be easy but “King Kong” has got to bring it on fight night in order to have a chance at beating the heavy fisted “Bronze Bomber” inside that squared circle.

Don’t miss this action-packed Heavyweight rematch on Fox Sport PBC Pay-per-View on Saturday night November 23, 2019 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Andy Ruiz Jr. vs Anthony Joshua”

World Heavyweight Championship Challenge

It has now officially been announced. The highly anticipated rematch between newly crowned Unified IBF, IBO, WBA and WBO Heavyweight Champion of the World Andy Ruiz Jr. (33-1, 22 Kos) and former Heavyweight Champion Anthony Joshua (22-1, 21 Kos) is set to take place in an open-air arena in Diriyah, Saudi Arabia on Saturday night December 7, 2019.

In my eyes, what Andy accomplished back on June 1 at Madison Square Garden in New York City is genuinely one of the biggest upsets in Heavyweight history. Having finally tasted the fruits of his labor and enjoying that good life, Andy is now back preparing himself to prove the naysayers wrong if they think his win over AJ was a lucky break. The instant fame and attention he’s received till this day, along with holding all them Championship Belts, is something he’s not willing to part ways with anytime soon. Ruiz is firmly stating that his hunger to succeed is still there and he wants it to last. come December 7, 2019, Andy is anticipating on still being Heavyweight Champion of the World.

That being said, Anthony is seriously looking forward to the challenge ahead and at becoming a two-time Unified Heavyweight Champion of the World. AJ understands that he badly dropped the ball back in June and is now refocused on righting the wrong and reclaiming the No 1 Spot in the Heavyweight Division. Judging by the previous outcome it may look like Andy has AJ’s number and that could well be the case, but I’m anticipating Joshua to make the proper adjustments needed to neutralize Andy’s aggressive output.

With a full camp ahead this time around, Andy is expecting to be leaner, faster and that much sharper come fight night for whatever AJ is planning on bringing to that squared circle. Personally, I feel the pressure will be on Anthony to deliver and to deliver in a convincing fashion in order to reclaim the throne that was once his.

Andy ruined AJ’s U.S. debut back in June at Madison Square Garden in New York City. It will be up to Anthony to make sure history doesn’t repeat itself in Diriyah, Saudi Arabia on Saturday night December 7, 2019, live on DAZN and Sky Sports Box Office. Tune in and witness the outcome.

Blaze