ANTHONY JOSHUA has been tipped to BEAT Oleksandr Usyk in their rematch – by a man who bashed him up.
Andy Ruiz Jr caused one of boxing’s biggest ever shocks when he stopped AJ in the seventh round of their 2019 scrap.
That saw the Mexican snatch the WBA, WBO and IBF heavyweight titles in the most dramatic of fashion.
Joshua beat Ruiz Jr in the rematch before losing all his belts again, this time to Usyk.
But Ruiz believes his old foe can reclaim his titles – though admits he wants Usyk to win.
Speaking to ESNews, the 32-year-old said: “I think Joshua could pull it off.
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“I think he needs to go in there and be aggressive, just like how he was from the beginning.
“Not let them dictate the fight. As long as he’s doing the pressure, throwing a lot of combinations, not letting Usyk get comfortable and throwing his little slick shots, I think he can win.
“But Usyk is a man of Christ, so I’m gonna be going for him.”
Joshua will bid to avenge his schooling at the hands of the slick southpaw in the summer, although a date for their second showdown hasn’t been finalised.
The oil-rich Saudis are the current frontrunners to land the bout, and Hearn admits a desert dust-up will generate “more than double” the revenue it would in London.
He told The Mirror: “We’d like to do it in London, but Usyk’s on a share of the revenue.
“It’s probably more than double to do it elsewhere so we’re up against that.
“We’d like it in London because it gives you an edge, it gives AJ an edge and we’d definitely take an edge in that fight.
“But ultimately, both fighters have got to be happy with the deal and we have to generate the most revenue for that fight at the same time.”
July 23 is the current working date for Joshua’s second dance with Usyk, who recently left the front lines in Ukraine to prepare for his maiden defence of the unified heavyweight titles.
Joshua will hope to win back his heavyweight titles from Usyk this summer
