Oleksandr Usyk backed to KO Anthony Joshua in rematch after ‘giving him a boxing lesson’ in first fight

OLEKSANDR USYK has been backed to stop Anthony Joshua in their rematch after “giving him a boxing lesson” in their first fight.

Joshua was outclassed over 12 rounds last September but the pair are set to rematch on August 20 in Saudi Arabia.

2

Usyk almost forced a late knockout in the closing stages of the bout against an exhausted AJ.

And this time around Tyson Fury’s promoter Frank Warren predicted Joshua will not be hearing the final bell.

Warren told Boxing Social: “I think this time round he will stop him.

“This is not a rematch like he had with [Andy] Ruiz who trained in his larder. This fella [Usyk] is a complete athlete.

“He’s trained hard, he’s in camp, he takes it seriously, so I think he’s [Joshua] gonna have his hands full and he’s not gonna get any home advantage this time.”

Warren added: “He was behind in that fight all the way through. I had Usyk in front, well in front and Usyk was giving him a boxing lesson.”

Joshua, 32, first lost in 2019 but avenged the defeat to Andy Ruiz Jr, 32, six months later.

It means victory over Usyk, 35, would make him a rare three-time champion – although AJ has hinted at snubbing the belts.

FREE BETS AND SIGN UP DEALS – BEST NEW CUSTOMER OFFERS

Joshua told JD Sports: “This big Anthony Joshua goes and wins, becomes three-time, I’mma dash these belts.

“Because you’ve gotta learn to respect me as a person. Quote that. I’m tired, I don’t want to be respected because of the belts I hold.

“I wanna be respected because of the man you see.”

2