According to Mike Tyson’s ex-trainer, Anthony Joshua must be more like Deontay Wilder if he wants to become a world heavyweight champion again.
Speaking on his podcast, Teddy Atlas gave the Briton a few home truths as the former Olympic gold medalist, and two-time ruler aims for revenge against Oleksandr Usyk.
Joshua lost severely to the Ukrainian in the fall of 2021, adding further to a stoppage defeat at the hands of Andy Ruis Jr.
AJ’s legacy as a potential all-time great is now at stake. Another damaging reverse against Usyk could freeze him out of the championship picture.
DEONTAY WILDER MINDSET
Atlas believes Joshua must be more ruthless, adopting the mindset of Wilder after his loss to Tyson Fury.
“The greatest fighters go into their next success as if their bank account is still at zero,” said Atlas on his podcast.
“Joshua behaved after that fight like his bank account is pretty far past zero, pretty damn good.
“I wish he had a little bit of that sore loser in him like Wilder, especially after a fight that is so meaningful,” he added.
Joshua discussed his intentions on his comeback after revealing the Usyk loss hurt more than the Ruiz TKO.
“This one hurt. There were no problems. I just lost to the better man on the night. But it gave me the motivation to pull myself out of that position,” he told Sky Sports.
“When I lost the first time, I never made excuses, but I had my reasons. I knew I would get it back [from Ruiz].
“This one hurt because I was 100%, no problems. I just lost to the better man, and it hurt. But it gave me motivation. I’ll redeem myself.”
GAMEPLAN
Joshua plans to alter not only his thinking for the return.
“Game-plan, mindset, brain training, sparring, our approach, dietary needs, sleep, recovery, motivational speeches. It’s the biggest stage of my career.
“I belong on the big stage, I belong as a champion, I belong among the names of this generation – and you’ll see why.
“If I didn’t fight the best, I might not have lost,” concluded the Londoner.
Usyk vs. Joshua II is penciled in for the spring, possibly back in the UK.
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