Tyson Fury believes Anthony Joshua may still be injured and if the long-awaited heavyweight clash finally happens later this year, the “Gypsy King” will be looking to become the tenth man to carry his British rival to the canvas.

Joshua’s heavyweight aura didn’t disappear overnight. He broke in the match with Wladimir Klitschko, fell in the match with Andy Ruiz Jr. and has never fully recovered since then.

Long before Daniel Dubois smashed Joshua at Wembley and Fury publicly questioned his ability to take punches, warning signs were already observable for the former unified champion.

Dillian Whyte first took a look at boxing in 2015.

Joshua recovered to hold off Whyte but was badly concussed in a wild exchange that immediately raised doubts about the Olympic gold medalist’s reaction under pressure.

At the time, these concerns were drowned out by the hype around Joshua’s promotion. Eddie Hearn was building his biggest star and openly talked about Joshua as a generational heavyweight who could join the likes of Muhammad Ali and Lennox Lewis.

Then came Klitschko.

Anthony Joshua

Joshua’s victory over Wladimir Klitschko in 2017 remains one of the best heavyweight fights of the up-to-date era, but it also permanently changed how many watched him.

After tripping the Ukrainian, Joshua came close to forcing a stoppage before Klitschko suddenly turned the tide and sent the Londoner to the canvas with a powerful right hand.

Joshua recovered brilliantly and eventually stopped Klitschko in front of 90,000 fans at Wembley, but the image of him badly injured and exhausted in the middle rounds remained in people’s minds.

The aura of invincibility disappeared.

Even as Joshua continued his march towards an undisputed title shot and added the Joseph Parker belt to his collection, concerns about his durability never completely disappeared.

Then came the night that changed everything.

Andy Ruiz Jr.

When Jarrell Miller failed multiple drug tests ahead of Joshua’s American debut at Madison Square Garden, Matchroom began looking for a replacement who could keep the event alive.

Several names were discussed before Andy Ruiz Jr. was called.

By then, Ruiz had lost to Parker, whom Joshua had already beaten, and few gave the Mexican-American much of a chance to pull off the upset.

This decision backfired spectacularly.

Joshua dropped Ruiz early on before completely breaking down as the challenger exposed huge weaknesses in the champion’s squad. Ruiz dropped Joshua four times and took the unified heavyweight titles in one of the biggest shocks of the up-to-date era.

Joshua regained the belts six months later in Saudi Arabia, but the rematch never fully repaired the damage done to his reputation.

Ruiz entered the fight significantly overweight after admitting he had barely trained, and many viewed the second fight as little more than a controlled recovery mission.

From that point on, Joshua’s vulnerability became part of every major fight discussion surrounding him.

Broad kryptonite

Oleksandr Usyk then presented a completely different problem.

Joshua was chasing greatness against one of the most technically gifted fighters of his generation, but stylistically it always looked like a nightmare fight for the Briton. Usyk’s movement, timing, footwork and IQ repeatedly set Joshua up for two defeats.

Then Dubois came.

Unlike Usyk, Dubois did not defeat Joshua. It overwhelmed him.

Dubois repeatedly dropped Joshua and smashed him in devastating fashion at Wembley as all the senior concerns about Joshua’s durability and return immediately resurfaced.

Questions surrounding Joshua’s heavyweight reign have persisted over the years due to circumstances surrounding several of his championship wins and opportunities. The Dubois debacle has only intensified these conversations.

Tyson Fury aims for ten

Now Fury has reignited the entire debate ahead of the long-awaited showdown later this year by openly attacking Joshua’s biggest weakness.

If Fury finally defeats Joshua, he will become the tenth fighter to do so.

No one can question Joshua’s ambition, professionalism or desire to become one of heavyweight boxing’s biggest stars.

But every time Joshua hit the canvas, the perception around him changed a little more.

When heavyweight boxing senses weakness, it never forgets.

About the author

Phil Jay is the editor-in-chief of World Boxing News (WBN) and a boxing veteran with over 15 years of experience. Read the full biography.