Oleksandr Usyk v Anthony Joshua 2: How does AJ win back his world heavyweight titles in Saudi Arabia on Saturday?

Billed as ‘Rage on the Red Sea’, Anthony Joshua v Oleksandr Usyk 2 is the most eagerly anticipated heavyweight fight of 2022 and the stakes could not be much higher at the King Abdullah Sports City Arena in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

It’s a hugely significant showdown, especially for AJ, and there is a case to be made that Joshua’s career at elite level is on the line. A second defeat on the spin, and a third in five fights, would obviously be disastrous in terms of his ranking, marketability and crucially his reputation.

The pair met at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium last September, and despite home advantage and boxing in front of a raucous crowd in north London, Joshua 24-2 (22) was out-boxed over the twelve-round distance. It was a decent fight, more tactical than thrilling, but when the judges' scorecards of 117–112, 116–112 and 115–113 all in Usyk's favour came through, Joshua looked genuinely shocked. He alluded in the aftermath that his corner was telling him he was winning the fight.

“I swear I thought I was looking like Muhammad Ali in there,” he said when asked later about that first fight. Then in a clear dig at his team when talking about the closing stages of the first Usyk fight he said "I thought at that stage I was well in the fight because it didn't seem like there was any real communication as to where I'm at; like 'you're losing this fight… you're down by two rounds'. I didn't get that."

Whatever the truth, he has replaced long-time amateur and professional trainer trainer Rob McCracken with Robert Garcia in a bold move. It is a move that could pay dividends however. Garcia as a coach is known in the trade to have a very aggressive boxing mentality and tactical style, a style that should in theory suit Big Josh in this return.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing but it was tactical madness to try and outbox a master boxer in Usyk. This time round he must utilise his significant physical advantages to greater effect. He gave Usyk too much space to work and use his fluid movement on the night. When they go again he must stamp his authority on the rematch early on. AJ must use his size and power and explosiveness, all the traits that define him as a fighter, if he wants to win. In short he needs to roll the dice. He looked gun-shy at times in Tottenham, which was bizarre as Joshua’s right hand can be a true eraser. He doesn’t have Deontay Wilder one-shot power, but 22 wins inside schedule from his 24 wins tells its own story.

A crucial flaw that too many in boxing succumb to is that we focus too much on what a fighter can't do rather than what he can. Yes, AJ looked slow and ponderous at times last time out, but even though he fought the wrong fight tactically the action was not all one-way (Usyk was cut and marked up quite badly himself at the final bell). It’s not beyond the realms of possibility that if he is more aggressive and puts it on his opponent, he can get the ‘W’.

Conditioning and speed are also going to be important factors. If he comes in heavy, jumps on Usyk but can’t budge him, will he have the stamina for a dogfight? He always looks a tremendous physical specimen, but believe it or not there are negatives to being built that way as a boxer. Joshua has been known to hit the wall midway through fights, where that blood fills up in his muscles and he can’t get his shots off.

He came in at 240lbs for that first fight and only he will know whether that weight suited him. Usyk is so clever and difficult to nail cleanly, the chances of this fight ending quickly are slim and so he will need to have the engine to work for 12 rounds if needed. Joshua must work the body more in this return, which would create greater opportunities for heavier follow up punches upstairs. He certainly needs to increase his punch output and it is going to be absolutely fascinating to see if he can make the adjustments. AJ has a chance to become a three-time heavyweight champion with victory, so won’t lack for motivation. If he can find that old ‘Destruction and Destroy’ philosophy on the night, then anything is possible.

CLICK HERE FOR HOW OLEKSANDR USYK BEATS ANTHONY JOSHUA

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)

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