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By Stefan Radosavljevic: Joe Joyce showed me that I still have a lot to learn about boxing. It was the summer of 2019. when I first saw this British heavyweight fight as a professional.
Bryant Jennings’ overall decision win didn’t impress me at all. His jabs look slow, and without control, his defense is very vulnerable. In fact, I didn’t even watch Joyce’s next fight against Michael Wallisch. I knew he was a silver medalist from Rio, but I never looked at him as a competitor.
For me, Joyce was a very good heavyweight prospect with good results and a good PR team around him. And then Daniel Dubois fought. Many boxing fans, including myself, thought this was the end of the road for Joyce. Daniel looked explosive and fast, with a height and reach that matched Joe’s. It was a 10th round technical knockout by Dubois that made me reconsider my opinion of the Juggernaut.
The first thing you notice when you look at Joyce is, of course, his size: 6’6 with more than 260 pounds and an 81-inch reach. But its practical benefits are easy to see; I will talk about them later. Now, I want to say something about his loving work. This is a part of the Juggernaut story that is often overlooked and underrated. Joe started boxing late, he was 22 years old.
In 2012, he won the British Amateur Boxing Championship. The following year at the European Championships in Minsk, he won a bronze medal. In 2015 and 2016, Joyce was part of the World Series of Boxing, a competition that allows boxers to compete professionally while maintaining the status of a fan.
This is a very important experience for Joyce because, in ABA, he faced many fighters, including Oleksandr Usyk, the current world heavyweight champion. In the summer of 2016, Joyce won a silver medal at the 31st Olympic Games in Rio. Many observers thought he beat French fighter Tony Yoka but was robbed of the gold medal.
The following year Joe became a professional. In a short career as a fan, he progressed steadily, facing and, often, winning over the best fans of his time.
Now, as I said, more about Juggernaut’s physical abilities. The size and power are there, but so is the big punch and probably the best confidence among the heavyweights, which suits Usyk’s unstoppable engine.
What’s interesting to me is that Joyce never tries to be a slick, fast fighter. He is what he is, Juggernaut, and he uses it to the max. Strength in both hands, weak attacks, height, and advantage are used to great effect in the last two fights against Takam, Hammer, and Parker.
Joyce is also very confident in the ring; I never saw him panic or abandon his game plan. It is flawed, too, of course. The main thing, probably, is that he depends a lot on his chin. Sometimes Joe doesn’t move his head at all and gets hit in the face, lightning. His strength has saved him many times, but what if, one day, Deontay Wilder lands? So, when you combine power with the experience of a lover, how can Joyce go?
Judging by his last two fights, he has the tools to beat most of the top ten heavyweights. If Joe stays in shape and works on his defense, he can beat Joshua, Wilder, and Ruiz. All three fighters have stamina issues, and it will be very difficult to keep up with Joe, especially in the next round.
On the other hand, the two fighters who are very dangerous for Joyce are Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk. Joyce has never faced a serious boxer, and I don’t know how Joe would react to Fury’s brash style or Usyk’s absolute boxing background.
Unfortunately, none of these guys are in a rush to fight Joe, so it will be difficult for his managers to make a big fight. Whatever happens, I can wait to see Juggernaut fight again, and thank him for a much needed boxing lesson.
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