The stench of blood hangs over AJ’s rematch with Usyk in Saudi Arabia

The port city of Jeddah in Saudi Arabia is where Anthony Joshua and Oleksandr Usyk will meet on August 20 in what, if the the likes of Eddie Hearn of DAZN and Adam Smith of Sky Sports are to be believed, is a highly anticipated rematched. It’s hard to square this claim with their first fight at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in September last year, however, which turned out to be a largely one-sided affair involving the Ukrainian former cruiserweight king schooling the 6’6” Brit to the point of humiliation.

AJ at points in their previous clash was all over the place, arms flapping around as he tried but failed to contain Usyk’s unrelenting pressure and skillful and judicious use of a jab that found the target with near consummate ease. By the end of proceedings, the former Olympic champion was as desperate for the closing bell as any fighter has ever been; Usyk by then having pinned him up against the ropes, where he was dismantling him.

Given the magnitude of Usyk’s victory, AJ’s decision to trigger the rematch clause immediately afterwards will either prove his mettle or be his undoing come fight night on Saturday. He comes to the ring with a new team, having added veteran US trainer Robert Garcia at the expense of long time amateur and professional coach Rob McCracken, and it is claimed a whole new…