According to Tony Bellew, it was how the fight between Daniel Dubois and Anthony Joshua started that led to its ending.

Dubois came out wanting to fight. Anthony Joshua came out looking at boxing.

“There was no warm-up or rest in the fight, just ‘come out and let your hands go'” Bellew said in an interview with Instant Casino’s Liam Solomon. Bellew is a former cruiserweight titleholder who is currently a boxing commentator and is also friends with Joshua.

“Joshua went out and started fencing, and when you start fencing with that jab, if your jab isn’t acute and powerful at the beginning of the fight, you’re going to let someone in. This is a weapon, it is not a rangefinder. This is not a toy. This should be used as a weapon at the beginning of the fight.

“Lennox Lewis did it brilliantly. After stabbing Lennox Lewis, he would come out and be the first to let them know who was bossing them around. Boom, boom, straight down the pipe and then it’s easier for him to get inside. Then the odd jab will be a speed jab and it will be a variation of the jab. But at the beginning of the fight everything has to be acute and swift. You don’t want to get counted out and catch a frigid early in the fight.

Joshua was caught with a tidy right hand early in the first and then knocked down as the round came to an end. Joshua returned to the canvas time and again, getting knocked down in the third and fourth rounds. He had some success in the fifth set and became overconfident, executing a right chinlock while dropping his left hand, leaving himself wide open for Dubois’ compact right-hand counter, which was a devastating punch that knocked Joshua to his knees.

“He just didn’t let go of his hands and that’s really the bottom line,” Bellew said. “If Anthony Joshua meets him face to face and lets go of his hands, it will be George Foreman and Ron Lyle again, but I tell you what, it will be over even faster. I think it’s to Anthony Joshua’s advantage. But apparently he didn’t feel the same. His team didn’t feel the same and adopted a different game plan. I understand that what I am saying is very risky. And that is risky. But when your attributes stack better than your opponent’s – when you’re a little faster than your opponent, stronger, have better technical skills, better footwork, better defense – I don’t understand why you don’t get into exchanges with them right away.

“With the analogy I just gave, if you’re a little faster, you’ll get there first. If you are a little more explosive, the shots will be more damaging. He just didn’t take that approach and that’s his and the team’s fault.”

Bellew disagreed with those who believe that Joshua’s past success in the sport, whether it be his two world titles or the riches he has acquired, has taken away from his current hunger. There is a saying often attributed to Marvelous Marvin Hagler about how complex it is to get out of bed early for road work when you sleep in silk pajamas.

“The last thing Anthony Joshua has is the silk pajama effect,” Bellew said. “I watched him in training camp in Texas with players like Derrick James. I saw how he worked and how much he put into his preparations. He is one of the best athletes I have ever seen in heavyweight boxing, if not the best athlete and specimen. What happened was that in the first round he was shaken to the boots, and a right hook would have knocked out the horse. To get up and continue fighting after being pinned so difficult, you’ve seen stills and leisurely shots. It’s on the button. This is a bull’s-eye. There’s nothing wrong with Anthony Joshua’s beard because he stood up.

“I think the ‘silk pajama effect’ is a uninteresting and uncomplicated analogy to represent. He goes in there. He’s in great shape,” Bellew said. He soon added: “The only thing that lifts your spirit is physical fitness. How fit are you? And as we know, the return to form takes place during the 14 weeks before the fight, during the camp. Anthony Joshua gets up from the floor after a hammer blow, mate, and getting up like that shows how fit he was. To be in such shape, you have to work difficult at camp.

Former unified lightweight champion Nate Campbell says Dmitry Bivol will only last as long as he can endure the punishment he will inflict on October 12 in Riyad.

Campbell chooses IBF, WBC and WBO delicate heavyweight champion Beterbiev (20-0, 20 KO), who will win by knockout against WBA champion Bivol (23-0, 12 KO) due to his strength. Nate will pick Beterbiev until someone proves him wrong, and he doesn’t believe Bivol is a mighty enough puncher to do it.

Bookmakers still consider Bivol the favorite, even though more and more fans support Beterbiev’s victory. It’s uncomplicated to see why bettors are choosing Bivol because he’s 33, younger, isn’t dealing with a knee injury like Beterbiev, and has an impressive win over Canelo Alvarez.

“Beterbiev [will win]. One of my fans tried to get him on the podcast, but he hit the jackpot at the gym. My boyfriend said, “Damn, who keeps slamming the door to your gym?” He said, “That’s not a door.” This is Arthur hitting the head,” Nate Campbell said YSM sports mediatalking about why he chooses Artur Beterbiev to defeat Dmitry Bivol on October 12.

“Until you prove me otherwise, Beterbiev. Can you punch? You can neutralize the punch by being a bigger punch. Tell me which guy packs a bigger punch [than Beterbiev]. Bivol can box; I know he can box. But can he hit? I could box and punch.

Bivol has decent punching power, but it’s not extraordinary. He can knock out fighters, but he has to fire many shots during the fight. By doing this, he puts himself at risk of being hit. Fighting Beterbiev this way would be too threatening for him to get away with.

“It changes the vigorous of the game when you can box and punch. What is the most threatening style in boxing? [boxer-puncher]. It will be over when he can’t take it anymore,” Campbell said of a fight that will only last as long as Bivol can withstand the punishment from Beterbiev.

Bivol will likely make things ugly by staying on the move, jabbing and holding down Beterbiev as he gets close. He knows he can’t afford to fight from the inside without getting knocked out. This will be a hit-and-run fight with Bivol.

Luis Alberto Lopez’s career is in jeopardy after suffering a brutal 10th round knockout at the hands of Angelo Leo in August.

The knockout, delivered by a master left hook that sent Lopez’s IBF featherweight title to Leo, took place at Tingley Coliseum and left Lopez with a brain bleed, raising grave doubts about his future in the ring.

What is by far the greatest night of Leo’s career may turn out to be Lopez’s last moment in the ring.

Lopez’s co-manager, Hector Fernandez de Cordova, did not hold back in criticizing the handling of the fight, particularly pointing out referee Ernie Sharif.

“He was one of the worst referees I have ever seen in boxing,” Fernandez said. “A guy like that doesn’t deserve to fight at the level of a world champion – or even against amateurs. He’s a butcher. As a referee, you have to protect the players from each other and from themselves.”

The situation escalated further after the fight, with Lopez’s team claiming to have encountered resistance from the Fresh Mexico Athletic Commission to provide Lopez with continued medical care.

“The commission tried to convince me not to take him to the hospital,” Fernandez said. “They said, ‘You don’t have to.’ But I thought, “If you don’t want to pay for it, that’s fine.” I’ll pay for it. But we are talking about my player’s health. He didn’t even know the fight was over.

Lopez was ultimately transported to the hospital, where he spent the night for observation. “The neurologist told us the bleeding had stopped, but we would need another MRI in six months,” Fernandez said. “If Lopez still wants to continue fighting, I will decline any offer until we get an MRI. For me, it’s not about money or legacy; it’s about the life of a warrior. They are like my children, my siblings. I wouldn’t put them in any danger.

Fernandez also clarified that Lopez’s injury was not caused by a legal punch attempt. Instead, he believes the brain bleeding was the result of rabbit punches, explaining that the doctor told him the bleeding occurred at a 72-degree angle to Lopez’s left ear.

When approached for comment, Leo defended his performance, saying his actions were within the rules. “I don’t consider myself a muddy fighter,” Leo said. “I would never aim for the back of the head because of the damage it does to other players.”

Leo acknowledged the physical nature of the fight but maintained that his punches were legal. “I think a lot of the action was on the inside,” Leo said. “We were both throwing hooks to the side of the head, which is a legal strike. I got warned once for hitting the rabbit because it was too low, but other than that I don’t think it changed the fight.

The situation is further complicated by the IBF’s 10-pound limit for weigh-ins on the morning of a fight, which requires fighters to weigh no more than 10 pounds from the previous day’s weight. Lopez, who has fought at heavyweight and lightweight, may have had trouble cutting weight, potentially weakening him ahead of the fight – an issue that has yet to be widely addressed.

Despite these concerns, the most pressing issue remains Lopez’s brain damage, a stark reminder of the risks fighters take and the fine line between triumph and tragedy in boxing.