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Anthony Joshua is looking to avenge his loss to Oleksandr Usyk this summer exactly the way he recaptured his world titles from Andy Ruiz back in 2019.

AJ, now a two-time world champion, was supposed to showcase himself to the global audience in his American debut back on June 1, 2019.

Ruiz Jr shocked the world against Joshua
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Ruiz Jr shocked the world against JoshuaCredit: Getty

Ruiz Jr was a last minute replacement for the drug-shamed Jarrell Miller and given AJ’s adonis stature versus the overweight Ruiz Jr, many figured this fight was an open and shut case for the Brit.

But they were very, very wrong. Ruiz Jr would knock Joshua out in round seven of their title fight and Madison Square Garden was stunned.

However, much of the damage was done in an explosive round three. Joshua first put Ruiz down with a right uppercut, left hook combination.

Joshua went looking for the kill once Ruiz Jr answered the count, but instead he was met with a hook to the temple that changed the entire fight.

Joshua had never been hit like that
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Joshua had never been hit like thatCredit: getty

Mike Tyson broke the fight down after the event and he perfectly analysed what went wrong for AJ.

“His equilibrium. That’s your equilibrium,” Tyson pointed out after Ruiz’s first knockout. “He’s OK, his body is f***** up. He never got hit like that before. This motherf***** [Ruiz Jr] came to fight tonight.

“That’s never happened to him before. He’s never been hurt before. He’s never been in that situation before and it’s kind of scary and you kind of panic a little bit.

“His perspective changed. ‘We’re fighting.’ Ya know, we have a fight - this could be a long night. He’s conscious, everything is cool. But his body is not responding.”

Tyson said Joshua didn't know what to do in new waters
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Tyson said Joshua didn't know what to do in new waters

Joshua was on spaghetti legs for the rest of the third round and much of round four. Any poise Joshua usually exhibits had deserted him on the biggest stage and as Tyson points out, there was nothing he could do about it.

“He can’t do nothing. He can’t control this, it’s all f***** up. He don’t know why it’s doing this!”

At the end of the third round, Joshua is knocked down again after a barrage in the corner. Although he answers the referee’s count, when asked to walk forward, Joshua does not.

Despite that, the referee allows the fight to continue and the end of the round saves Joshua from having to engage anymore.

“He tried to save him, he tried to give him time,” Tyson said. “He knows he’s in trouble, he knows he’s in a lot of trouble.”

In the rounds that follow, Joshua is trying to regain his composure and footing. At one point, the Brit very openly and demonstratively takes a deep breath and he does it with a smile.

Once Ruiz saw the chink in AJ's armour, he smelt blood
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Once Ruiz saw the chink in AJ's armour, he smelt bloodCredit: GETTY

Tyson thought that was a mistake from Joshua.

“It’s an inexperienced move,” Iron Mike explained. “Fighting is the art of not letting the other one know. Don’t let them know anything. 

“When you’re hurt you get right in their face. When you get knocked down you say ‘you motherf*****’ you get up and say ‘I’m gonna f****** kill you!’ You have to do something. 

Joshua was soundly beaten by Usyk last year
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Joshua was soundly beaten by Usyk last yearCredit: Mark Robinson/Matchroom

“Something has to be done. You don’t just get knocked down and get back up.”

Joshua learned his lessons with Ruiz Jr, but can he do the same against one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world in Oleksandr Usyk this summer?

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