By Kunle Awosiyan
Anybody can win governorship election in Edo State, I don’t care.
What matters to me on Saturday is Anthony Joshua winning his match against Daniel Dubois.
Take your Edo and give me Joshua, I will welcome you to my house to share some palm wine from Ile-Ife.
My prayer has been for Joshua to become a three-time heavyweight champion and in two days, I see him making this record.
Muhammad Ali became the first heavyweight boxer to become three-time champion until the record was broken by Evander Holyfield who even went further to become four-time heavyweight champion.
On Saturday, Joshua will be facing his compatriot, Dubois for IBF belt.
He is thinking more of the three-time record than the undisputed title, which he may try only if he is able to beat Dubois on Saturday.
For Joshua to defeat ambitious Dubois, he will need to exploit “hit-and-dont-get it” tactics. This is the real science of boxing that has separated great champions from others.
Ali was a master “hit and run” boxer and it made him to defeat more stronger opponents like Earnie Shavers, George Foreman and Ron Lyle who were hard punchers of his era.
These were Americans who dominated the boxing world with their tactics and powers, including Larry Holmes who came into the game, using his jabs on motion.
He mimicked Ali so much that the tactics paved way for his many successes.
Americans are good mobile jabbers unlike the Britons who throw jabs and wait for their opponent to counter it.
Except Briton Lennox Lewis whose sojourn in North America, Canada, remodelled his boxing skills to British-America style.
Lewis till date is the best the British has produced just because he integrated the boxing culture of the American into his style. Lewis jabs and moves.
Even though he has got the chin, Lewis is a smart pugilist. He roars like a lion and fight like a cat. So heavy in the wrist and yet light on his toes.
Joshua must learn from Lewis to beat Dubois because the IBF champion will come out to defend the belt that fell into his lap. Does he merit the belt he never fought for? Saturday will decide.
Dubois has got some big punches and has built stamina in the last few matches he fought. He is coming as an underdog against Joshua but then he has got something to prove, to defend the IBF belt.
From my observations, I can infer that Dubois will be exploring the Andy Ruiz Jr’s tactics against Joshua. He will want to fight dirty. He will want to hit Joshua’s temple and destabilise the challenger perhaps he would quit.
Joshua must watch out for a Dubois that is unmindful of a decorous boxing. This is why he must not allow stray punch to hit him at all and be clinical in his approach against Dubois.
Joshua/Dubois reminds me of Frank Bruno and Lewis in all British encounter. Bruno is the harder puncher but a Briton who hardly runs away from punches while Lewis is a more tactical boxer who hits and runs.
Despite that Bruno was winning on points, it took few combinations from Lewis to see him off via a technical knockout. This is what Joshua must do for Dubois.
Allow Dubois to beat the air and finish him with a few combinations. If Oleksandr Usyk could do it with a hook, guess Joshua can do it with an uppercut.
Good luck to Joshua
Kunle Awosiyan lives in Lagos