George Foreman has blasted Anthony Joshua for his performance in the shock defeat to Oleksandr Usyk, asking him: “Who are you AJ?”.
Joshua lost a unanimous points decision to the undefeated Ukrainian who produced a dominant performance to take the world heavyweight title belts at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Saturday night.
Having stepped up from the cruiserweight division, Usyk faced questions over his stamina and power, but it was Joshua who struggled to find answers throughout the fight.
The 31-year-old did not impose his superior strength and aside from a right hand which connected in the sixth round, he barely troubled his opponent.
Fellow former two-time heavyweight champ Foreman, 72, was bemused by what he saw and took to Twitter to share his thoughts.
He said: “Saw the Joshua/Usyk fight: AJ seemed afraid? He lost his identity. (should I be cautious (go 12) attack with my power?).
“Usyk typical southpaw “if you won’t hit me I’ll be award and hit you” something’s wrong not AJ he took his punishments. Who are you AJ?”
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Joshua’s lacklustre performance led to all three judges ruling the fight in Usyk’s favour, handing him only his second ever professional defeat.
The loss has put a British super fight with Tyson Fury in serious doubt, though that could be back on track if the defeat is rectified in a rematch.
Promoter Eddie Hearn has said Joshua will want to get back in the ring as soon as possible, but Usyk didn’t seem so keen in his post-fight interview.
(Image: Getty Images)
“I have been working so hard since January in preparation for this fight, it took me half a year and I didn’t see my family for so long,” he said.
“I missed seeing them playing. I want to go home and be happy with my family and I’m not thinking about the rematch.”
Joshua is still intent on meeting Fury and said he’d fight him without any belts on the line: “As I said, I’ll fight Tyson Fury, Wilder, without the belts.”