Anthony Joshua Remains Big Favourite Despite Loss in First Fight
Published on June 6th, 2019 5:29 pm ESTWritten By: Dave Manuel
Despite getting knocked out in their first fight, Anthony Joshua remains the clear favourite to defeat Andy Ruiz Jr. in their rematch. Anthony Joshua had an immediate rematch clause in his contract if he lost to Ruiz, and his side decided to immediately exercise that clause.
The rematch between Joshua and Ruiz is scheduled to take place this fall in the United Kingdom. With Joshua fighting in front of a friendly crowd, the general consensus is that he should be able to regain his Heavyweight titles.
The biggest question, however - will Joshua be able to recover from an embarrassing knockout at the hands of Ruiz? As we've seen before, a shock knockout can completely derail the career of a fighter. Many fighters don't have the mental fortitude to get past such a loss.
Some people think that the bloom is permanently off of the Anthony Joshua rose, while others think that the Ruiz knockout is not going to be repeated.
One thing is for sure - Joshua is not going to have a super easy time with Ruiz. Ruiz proved to be durable and up for the challenge, and he certainly has enough power in his hands to turn out Joshua's lights.
It will be fascinating to see how Joshua rebounds from the loss.
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Let's take a look at the odds for the rematch between Joshua and Ruiz:
Source: Bet365
Time Stamp: June 6th, 2019 5:24 pm EST
Odds Subject to Change
Anthony Joshua, 1.28
Andy Ruiz Jr., 3.50
As you can see, Joshua is still the clear favourite to win, though there is no doubt that Ruiz certainly has a great shot of winning.
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There is no doubt that this is the biggest fight of Anthony Joshua's career.
Another loss at the hands of Ruiz would almost certainly spell the end of Anthony Joshua's time as a star, even in his home country of the United Kingdom.
An emphatic win over Ruiz would likely set Joshua up for the winner of Fury vs Wilder, which is scheduled to take place in late 2019 or early 2020.
