Barry McGuigan: I don’t think Anthony Joshua will ever beat the top fighters

Former WBA featherweight champion Barry McGuigan has told William Hill’s podcast, Up Front with Simon Jordan, that Anthony Joshua will never beat any of the world’s top fighters, and that his ship has now sailed.

Featuring on William Hill’s Up Front with Simon Jordan, a podcast hosted by the former Crystal Palace owner who speaks to sports stars and celebrities and challenges their opinions whilst scrutinising their careers, McGuigan discussed Joshua and his current chances of beating the world’s best fighters: “I just don’t think he’ll ever beat the top guys, he’s too easily hit and he’s too easily hurt these days. Tyson Fury has been dropped many times and he can cope with being dropped. Filip Hrgović would be a disaster for Joshua, and even Zhilei Zhang would be a really tough fight for him.

“I really like Anthony Joshua and I don’t really know him personally, but his ability to take a shot has disappeared. He’s not willing to run into the lion’s den and get shots fired at him, shots that miss him by whiskers that could knock him unconscious. I don’t know if he has the want to do that anymore, and once that happens, I don’t think he will beat any of the top guys. He’s still a great fighter, but I just don’t think he beats the top guys because of that.”

The ship has sailed

Continuing the discussion around Joshua, McGuigan explained that he thinks the ship has sailed when it comes to the 33-year-old’s boxing career, and that the fighter doesn’t have the same self-belief that he used to.

“I think the ship has sailed with Anthony Joshua,” said McGuigan. “I don’t think he’s got that final extra bit that makes the difference between good and great. I think he has no confidence in his ability to take a shot, and when that happens in the heavyweight division, it’s over. He can fool himself as much as he wants, but Jermaine Franklin wasn’t a big puncher. I’d hoped that he’d stop him and then show the courage to hit, hurt, and take him out, but he never showed that.

“I can look into a fighter’s eyes and see things that other guys can’t see, and that’s the difference between me and the ordinary person. I don’t believe the has the same self-belief that he used to have. I believe he has arrived at the position now where it comes to doing little things that make the difference between being good and great. I was willing to take more risks, drive myself harder and overtake guys simply because I wanted it more and they weren’t willing to go to the places that I was willing to go to.”

He’s been great for boxing, but I know what I saw

McGuigan also spoke on whether Joshua can still be better in future fights, possibly hinting that his career in boxing may be coming to an end and his role may now lie in commentary.

“He’s been great for boxing. He’s a lovely guy, he can do great commentary and loads of stuff outside boxing,” said McGuigan. “Lots of people still say, ‘It wasn’t a great performance, but he’ll be better next time’, but I as a fighter know what I saw. You can look at guys in punching range with shots flying over their heads by millimetres, and you look at their eyes and their reactions, and he has that nervousness about him that doesn’t go away. When you get older it doesn’t go away, it only gets worse.

“There’s a different level of determination to be a fighter. You get to the stage where your talents bring you to a certain level, and then you think ‘I’m going to get hit in the head’ or ‘I’m going to have some body shots’, but you have to think: ‘Am I willing to take the shots to beat my opponent down?’ You get to a level in any sport and suddenly, you are competing on a level where they are as good as you are. There is a different level of determination when it comes to physical contact and putting your life on the line.”

You can watch the full episode here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EXCGzXMfKdY.