Trainer Tony Sims points out that Anthony Joshua's recent setback to Daniel Dubois is a sign that he is aging, as all fighters do sooner or later if they stay in the sport.
Careful alignment
Joshua can still win if he matches up carefully, as his promoter Eddie Hearn did for him recently, until his knockout loss to Dubois. AJ has enough left to beat Tyson Fury next time and move on, but that would require Hearn to fight his no-punchers.
The 35-year-old Joshua (28-4, 25 KOs) suffered the fourth loss of his career, losing to IBF heavyweight champion Dubois (22-2, 21 KOs) by fifth-round knockout on September 21 in front of a large crowd. of 96,000 fans at Wembley Stadium in London.
Joshua has looked good in his four previous fights against tune-up opponents, but was outmatched against Dubois and was knocked down four times in the fight.
At one point it looked like the referee was going to stop the contest in the fourth round after Joshua was dropped, but he seemed to change his mind when he saw AJ get up. Many believed that the fight should have been abandoned.
“He had a fantastic career, but everyone gets old. Young people always come through, and Daniel Dubois was that young man,” said Tony Sims to Secondsout, speaking of Anthony Joshua. “There will come a day when he will be Joshua's age (34) and someone else will come, and that's the way boxing develops.
“Great champions grow old, and young ones pass away. It is a piece of history that is happening. I believe that happened. Joshua had a great career. What he has done for our sport is incredible. He brought stadiums, huge stadiums, packed the O2 Arena. He brought boxing to the fore in Britain.
“It's a short career. One minute, you're the youngster in the gym, and the next minute, you're the oldest in the gym, and it goes by that fast. That's what I believed happened. Everyone moves on, and now it's Dubois' time. One day, it will be time for another young man. Maybe Moses Itauma thinks it will come to the table when his time comes. It's just years and it happens.
Joshua has only lost to these three fighters:
– Andy Ruiz
– Oleksandr Usyk x 2
– Daniel Dubois
It's not like Joshua has lost to too many different fighters throughout his career, and he still has the strength, speed and skills to keep winning for another decade.
What's next for Joshua?
“He is a very, very rich man, perhaps one of the richest to come from these shores. He doesn't have to fight, but if he has to, he'll watch Tyson Fury,” Sims said.
The promoters are already talking about the next fight between Joshua and Tyson Fury and there is a high possibility that we will make it happen. Joshua has decided against a rematch with Daniel Dubois and will not risk facing Oleksandr Usyk again after losing to him twice. There are no other compelling fights for him in the division that fans want to see AJ take on besides Fury.