Lennox Lewis: 'A long road ahead' for former champion Anthony Joshua despite victory over Wallin - Eurosport

Posted on December 24th, 2023 at 1:20 AM GMT.

"Joshua Dominates Wallin In 2023 Comeback Win"

On December 23, 2023, Anthony Joshua from the United Kingdom attained victory over Otto Wallin from Sweden in their heavyweight boxing match held at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh. Joshua expressed his elation and celebrated his triumph.

Credit for the image goes to Getty Images.

According to the words of Lennox Lewis, it will take Anthony Joshua quite some time before he can determine if he is indeed a champion once again, as there is a challenging path ahead of him.

On Saturday night in Riyadh, Joshua easily defeated Otto Wallin, leading his promoter Eddie Hearn to call him "the best heavyweight in the world" and declare that he is now back in top form.

The former three-belt champion in the same category, Lewis, and the Briton had given severe physical blows to Wallin, which made it impossible for the Swedish boxer to continue in the sixth round of the fight.

Joshua has achieved three consistent victories in a row, all in 2023, despite enduring two consecutive losses to Oleksandr Usyk that stripped him of his titles. Nonetheless, there appears to be uncertainty surrounding his scheduled match with Deontay Wilder in 2024, following the American's definitive defeat to Joseph Parker in the previous bout.

When asked about his performance, Joshua was more withdrawn than Hearn. He stated that he will trust new trainer Ben Davison's judgement and did not give a clear verdict. After the fight, Lewis commented to TNT Sports Box Office that the evidence presented by Wallin in the ring was insufficient to formulate a solid opinion.

He expressed that he was unable to make a conclusive evaluation regarding the fight as to whether the individual had fully recovered. Nonetheless, the individual performed exceptionally well and accomplished what he was expected to do - getting rid of an opponent he had previously defeated.

I observed that the man had no visible muscular tone in his physique. It's uncertain if he had undergone intensive physical training or practice sessions since I didn't witness him landing any successful punches during the bout. In contrast, AJ appeared to be unblemished and aesthetically pleasing after the fight, resembling a Hollywood actor. It seemed as if he hadn't even participated in the match.

In my opinion, the fight is beneficial for his psychological well-being, and many people are stating that he has returned to form. However, there is still a significant amount of work left to be done before he can face off against Fury. A potential bout against China's Zhilei Zhang would also be an excellent matchup.

Carl Frampton, a previous world champion, was quite impressed with AJ's performance. He stated that Otto Wallin was a good boxer and quite difficult to defeat, but AJ made him look like an average fighter. This was due to AJ's dominance and exceptional display of talent.

"He attacked the body with great precision. I feel like he showed a glimpse of his former self, but he maintained composure throughout the fight."

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