Swedish heavyweight contender Otto Wallin has raised concerns about Anthony Joshua’s mental state in the lead-up to their twelve-round headlining bout on December 23, which also features Deontay Wilder fighting Joseph Parker as part of the main event.
Amidst the ongoing narrative surrounding Anthony Joshua’s (26-3, 23 KO’s) mental resilience since his loss to Andy Ruiz Jr. in 2019, Otto Wallin (26-1, 14 KO’s) has expressed his observations about Joshua’s perceived mental weaknesses and a shift in his fighting style.
“He’s still one of the best fighters in the world, so he deserves respect, but I feel like lately, what used to make him good was that he was aggressive, a seek & destroy kind of guy, and he’s gone back from that,” Wallin stated in an interview with IFL TV.
“I think that he feels more vulnerable now; he knows that he can get beat, and he cares so much about what people think, how he looks when he fights… for some reason, he has lost that seek & destroy a little bit.“
Wallin’s comments align with the widespread perception of Anthony Joshua’s stylistic changes following his first career loss to Andy Ruiz Jr. Since then, the British heavyweight has switched coaches multiple times, leading to adjustments in his approach, including a more defensive stance.
“He’s been changing trainers a lot now, and that’s usually a bad sign, and I think that is the same for him now,” Wallin commented on Joshua’s coaching changes. He emphasized the importance of trust between a fighter and their trainers and suggested that frequent changes could lead to trust issues, particularly in high-stakes fights.
Regarding Joshua’s temporary collaboration with Ben Davison, Wallin expressed skepticism about its impact on their upcoming fight, attributing the perceived issues to mental struggles. Wallin stated, “I think that Joshua has mental issues. He doesn’t want to get beat again, no one wants to get beat, but he doesn’t like to get hit, being beat of course, so I think that’s the big problem.”
Anthony Joshua and Otto Wallin will co-headline the ‘Day of Reckoning’ event at the Kingdom Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, featuring other popular fighters such as Dmitry Bivol, Daniel Dubois, and Jai Opetaia.
