Two British heavyweight stars carried crushing punching power and showed vulnerability and, to some, “a suspect chin.” Both world champions are hugely popular. Anthony Joshua and Frank Bruno, two British Kings from different eras – who would have won this fantasy fight?
Carl Froch, who, as we know, has been arguing with AJ on social media, the two in the middle of some sort of feud, recently gave his take on what would have happened here. Perhaps surprisingly, perhaps not, depending on whose team you find yourself on as far as this Dream Fight goes, Froch picked Bruno to defeat Joshua.
“The Frank Bruno that fought Lennox Lewis in Cardiff back in the 90s……that Frank Bruno beats Anthony Joshua,” Froch said to BestOnlinePokerSites. “I’m sorry, but he just does. It’s all about timing, and you can’t hold that against Anthony Joshua. I know they call it heavyweight, but it’s very thin now. The landscape of heavyweight boxing. It’s not what it used to be.”
Bruno gave Lewis a heck of a rough time of things when they met in October of 1993, with Bruno damaging Lennox’s eye and rocking him before being brutally stopped in round seven. It was the old Bruno curse, with him running out of gas in the second half of a fight, as had been the case when “Big Frank” fought and lost to Bonecrusher Smith and Tim Witherspoon.
Bruno was stopped five times during his career, while Joshua was halted just once, and Andy Ruiz did this. However, as Froch said, Bruno faced great opposition, with Bruno losing to Smith, Witherspoon, Mike Tyson, Lewis, and Tyson again. How would Joshua have faired in fights with those men?
Who has, or had the better chin, Joshua or Bruno? Bruno showed in his career that he could take a good shot, and his first fight with Tyson won him even more admirers here in the UK. In contrast, AJ took Wladimir Klitschko’s bombs and won, getting up to do so. Joshua has looked somewhat gunshy since the Ruiz shock, but not in his last couple of fights where he has looked back to his best.
The best version of Bruno (which Froch says was the Bruno who fought Lewis) against the best version of Joshua (let’s say, for the sake of argument, the AJ who defeated Klitschko) – who would have won? It’s not hard to come up with a few different scenarios, but most will undoubtedly agree that this one would have ended inside the distance, most likely with a violent KO being scored.
But who would have been left standing?
Bruno had a punishing left jab, while Joshua is more athletic and relaxed in the ring. Both men had good amateur careers, AJ especially. In terms of stamina, Joshua comes out on top, with Bruno only ever going 12 rounds once. He held on through sheer exhaustion to decide Oliver McCall in at last becoming a heavyweight champion, this at the fourth attempt.
Against each other, both Bruno and Joshua would have been dangerous early. Had the fight gone beyond the halfway stage, it would be Joshua’s fight. But might Bruno, who we must remember wobbled a near-peak Tyson hard in the opening round of their 1989 brawl, have tagged AJ quickly with him, hurting him badly?
This particular Dream Fight is pretty interesting, especially for British fans.
Joshua KO9 is the pick here, but what do YOU guys think?
