Anthony Joshua stood in the ring, confused. What happened? Sure, he lost his first fight to Oleksandr Usyk. But he wasn’t as prepared then as he could have been. That’s what he told himself, at least. He changed trainers and altered his strategy. He had been there before. When he lost to Andy Ruiz Jr., he came back and dominated the rematch. That’s what was supposed to happen against Usyk.
But that’s not what happened.
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He did everything he thought he needed to do and it still wasn’t good enough to defeat Usyk. And he had to accept that. But it’s a tough pill to swallow when you've spent so many years being Superman and then someone comes around and makes you realize that you are really just Clark Kent.
As Joshua held the microphone and attempted to cut a bizarre pro-wrestling-style babyface promo after the fight, the world witnessed something it had never seen before: Anthony Joshua was human. He had feelings. He was hurting. Someone was better than him and he knew it.
He babbled with frustration in his voice. He talked about not learning how to box until much later in life. He talked about skill. He talked about how great Usyk was. And then he left.
Would this be the last time we would see Anthony Joshua in a boxing ring?
Probably not.
Why?
Because he still has something to prove.
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Yes, Anthony Joshua has ruled the heavyweight division before. But that’s not necessarily what he’s after again. He doesn’t need belts or our praise to validate him. He needs to do this for himself. Over the course of 24 rounds, Usyk took something from Joshua that is greater than belts. He took his greatness. Ruiz took his invincibility, but even Superman had off nights against the likes of Lex Luthor.
Everyone has a bad night. It happens. But when someone proves that they are better than you, everything you've accomplished gets thrown into a blender of criticism. Was he ever that good to begin with? Whether he admits it or not, that will be ringing in his head following this loss.
👏 A very emotional Anthony Joshua can't hold back the tears after an impressive performance ended in defeat to Oleksandr Usyk. #UsykJoshua2 pic.twitter.com/PSU4ukY6SY
— Sporting News Boxing (@sn_fights) August 21, 2022
It’s not as if Usyk blew him out. He just beat him. He was simply the better fighter on this night. Joshua simply has to accept that. But there are plenty of options for him to test himself, not to mention that he’s still a superstar overseas. Who wouldn’t watch Joshua fight Joe Joyce, Filip Hrgovic or Daniel Dubois?
But the real fight is between Joshua and Deontay Wilder.
Two giant knockout kings and former world champions who nearly crossed paths years ago? Sign the world up for that fight. The losses don’t matter. The excitement and potential war do. If you think for one second that a fight between Joshua and Wilder wouldn’t capture the attention of the world, then you don’t love boxing. And Anthony Joshua loves boxing.
Wilder certainly does, as well, considering that he’ll be back in action in October. Losing sucks, but it’s not the end of the world. You just have to be willing to accept that there is someone who is better than you. Once you get by that, you can work on being great again.
Anthony Joshua enjoys fighting. He obviously enjoys winning, but he seems to like the challenge of overcoming adversity.
He wants to know that he still has it. There is a stone that he needs to chip away at if he ever wants to consider holding championship gold again. Not to mention that there is still a lot of money out there.
Anthony Joshua will be back again. He may not be the only Superman walking this earth anymore, but that just means that he'll have to work twice as hard with the natural gifts that he has to prove to himself that he can compete.
It may have felt like the end of the world in Saudi Arabia, but it may just be a new beginning. This won't be the last time we see Anthony Joshua inside a boxing ring.
