Anthony Joshua is thriving on his underdog status heading into Saturday’s heavyweight rematch with Oleksandr Usyk, according to his promoter Eddie Hearn.
Joshua is seeking to defy the odds by reclaiming the WBA, IBF and WBO belts he surrendered to the Ukrainian pound-for-pound contender at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium last year.
Although the conclusive points defeat was a shattering setback, Hearn believes Joshua has benefited from having a heavy burden lifted from his shoulders.
“The pressure’s off,” Hearn told the PA news agency. “I know he must win, but now he’s the underdog and people aren’t expecting him to win.
“He’s had to carry British boxing on his shoulders for years and years and that pressure has got to him. It’s arduous.
“People see this guy with belts, fame and money and just presume that’s a great life. But on the other foot, he’s also a young man who just wants to chill out and play football with his mates in the park, go for a coffee and do all these normal things he’s not able to do.
“It may not be as pleasing, exciting or entertaining, or provide as much happiness, as you might think. And he’s felt a lot of that pressure over the years because it’s a bubble he lives in.”
Joshua has spent over a month in Jeddah finalising preparations for ‘Rage on the Red Sea’, acclimatising to a city where the daily temperature hits the late thirties and where he is largely able to move unnoticed.
“Being out here for four weeks has been good for him – he’s been able to go to the mall, have a coffee, go for a stroll through the hotel without everyone jumping on him for photos and interviews,” Hearn said.
“People sometimes don’t understand that pressure and right now that pressure’s just been depleted a little bit.
“Let him go out and do his thing. It’s all about hindsight. He thought it might be over but really he’s just getting started. He’s been an unbelievable ambassador for British boxing and there’s a long way to go yet in the AJ story.
“I’ve heard a lot of people say his career’s on the line and he’s fighting the pound-for-pound number one in the sport. It’s also going to be a very, very tough fight.
“He’s the underdog in the fight and we should be here as the underdog in the fight, but the B side is that we come with nothing and can leave with everything.
“That’s the mentality he should have this week – smash and grab. For years he’s been parading around as the A side, filling stadiums.
“It was almost that people didn’t care who AJ fought. Now let’s be the B side, come in on the blindside and smash this guy up and take the belts home.”
Usyk is having to cope with an entirely different type of pressure as he looks to deliver a morale-boosting victory to a nation that is at war with Russia.
The 35-year-old former undisputed cruiserweight has been given dispensation by the Ukrainian military to leave Ukraine and fight Joshua knowing the feel-good factor it could generate in a country that is under siege.
“Oleksandr is a professional and he has to deal with the circumstances and accept them,” Usyk’s promoter Alexander Krassyuk told PA.
“Of course it’s not pleasant, of course he does everything to support the people back home and motivate them.
“He’s always fighting for Ukraine, but now it’s something special. He was blessed for this rematch by high-ranking military officers because everyone wants the Ukrainian flag to rise, for the Ukrainian anthem to be heard. That’s why he’s here.”
Oleksandr Usyk v Anthony Joshua 2: Who is favourite and what are the odds?
Oleksandr Usyk is odds-on favourite with Sky Bet to retain his belts but Anthony Joshua won't be short of support at 13/8.
- Usyk to win: 1/2
By decision: 13/8
By KO/TKO: 15/8 - Joshua to win: 7/4
By decision: 7/1
By KO/TKO: 9/4 - Draw: 20/1
Sky Bet have a full range of RequestABets and many other markets by clicking here.
Oleksandr Usyk v Anthony Joshua 2: Date, start time, TV channel and cost
The blockbuster rematch is taking place on Saturday, August 20 at at King Abdullah Sports City, also nicknamed The Shining Jewel, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
The undercard is expected to begin from around 1800 BST, with the main event to start between 2230 BST and 2300 BST.
The fight will be shown on Sky Sports Box Office (Sky channel 491) and Sky Sports Box Office HD (Sky channel 492), with their broadcast starting from 1800 BST and will cost £26.95 for UK customers and €31.95 for Republic of Ireland customers.
You can also listen to the fight on talkSPORT.
Oleksandr Usyk v Anthony Joshua 2: Running order and undercard
- Oleksandr Usyk v Anthony Joshua (Approx 2230 BST)
WBA (Super), IBF, WBO and IBO heavyweight titles - Callum Smith v Mathieu Bauderlique
Final eliminator for WBC light heavyweight title - Filip Hrgovic v Zhilei Zhang
Final eliminator for IBF heavyweight title - Badou Jack v Richard Rivera
- Ramla Ali v Crystal Garcia Nova
- Andrew Tabiti v Tyrone Spong
- Daniel Lapin v Jozef Jurko
- Ziyad Almaayouf v Jose Alatorre
- MoneyKicks v Paevie (from around 1800 BST)
