By Shaun Murphy-
David Haye has predicted that Anthony Joshua could retire if he losses his rematch to Olegsander Usyk this August.
He lost his IBF, WBA and WBO belts after a masterful display from the undefeated Ukrainian at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium last September.
The atmosphere for the highly anticipated rematch in August will be electrifying, as Joshua seeks to once again reclaim his belts in Saudi Arabia, having avenged his only other defeat to Andy Ruiz Jr in Diriyah in 2019.
Joshua’s game plan fell apart in their first meeting last year , with the Briton failing to utilise his superior size and strength advantages against the former cruiserweight champion, who outclassed him over 12 rounds, nearly knocking him out in the process.
Usyk, himself an olympic gold medalist in the 2012 olympics, had just two heavyweight fights under his belt when he schooled Joshua and embarrassed the former heavyweight champion, damaging his reputation even further. Having participated in the war for his native Ukraine, the gifted new heavyweight champion will be eager to retain his titles and really make history by shining twice, and confirming Joshua to be history worth forgetting.
‘If he doesn’t win, I am not sure he wants to be in a sport where he knows he is not the best,’ Haye said.
‘He got out-hustled by someone he knows he can beat and if – he does everything right and Usyk still beats him – I don’t know if there is anything else for him to do in the sport.
‘He is such a winner that I don’t know what he does next, if he loses again.
‘He believes he has all the physical abilities to beat Usyk, so do I, so with the right plan he can get the victory.’
Joshua has lost his undisputed belts twice now and is seeking to become third time world champion next month. Another defeat will surely spell the end of his career, as boxing fans will write him off completely and have no interest in seeing him in a ring again.
His rematch will be an opportunity for him to re-establish himself as the dominant force in the heavyweight division, especially with unbeaten Tyson Fury retired, although there will be calls for him to the gypsy king to unify the belts for history’s sake and prove himself to be the best by beating a victorious Joshua.
Joshua will be walking around like a true king if he regains his titles, and should hope Fury stays retired , rather than call him out to rip the belts off his waist again, which most fans believe will be the scenario in the event of a unification clash.