Heavyweight boxing prospect Jared Anderson is quickly making a name for himself, but he still has a way to go before he’s considered a true contender. In the meantime, he’s keeping a close eye on former unified champion Anthony Joshua. Despite Joshua’s recent victory against Jermaine Franklin at the O2 Arena, Anderson doesn’t think the British boxer has fully recovered from his knockout loss to Andy Ruiz back in 2019.

Anderson acknowledged Joshua’s improvement since his back-to-back defeats against Oleksandr Usyk, but he remains doubtful that Joshua has what it takes to topple his biggest rivals, Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury. While Joshua’s new coach, Derrick James, was happy with his performance against Franklin, Anderson believes there is more at play than just their fresh partnership.

Anderson thinks that Joshua’s reluctance to fully engage in the ring and finish off his opponents comes from the lingering effects of his knockout defeat at the hands of Ruiz. Back in 2019, Joshua’s dominant reign in the UK came crashing down as he was stopped in the seventh round by Ruiz in a major upset. Joshua later avenged this loss, but according to Anderson, the psychological damage has already been done.

The young boxer’s view is a fascinating insight into the minds of those who dare to enter the ring, showing that even the strongest warriors can be affected by a significant setback. Whether Joshua can continue to rebuild his reputation and prove Anderson wrong remains to be seen, but for now, the heavyweight division has a compelling narrative and some truly intriguing characters to follow.