As boxing’s popularity appears to be back on the up, with numerous charismatic, entertaining and popular fighters coming into their own, it’s easy to be drawn into the hype promoters drum up for their most prized athletes. Last Saturday, this overhyping was somewhat confirmed when superstar Anthony Joshua was beaten up and stopped by massive underdog Andy Ruiz. So as boxing fans, who should we be looking to for genuine talent when you can’t rely on biased media pundits and the many tentacles of boxing’s big promoters. Well, for one, Joshua Buatsi.
Casual fans may overlook Buatsi as merely a frequent undercard fighter on Matchroom Shows, but to the hardcore amongst, he looks like a natural born killer. Born in Ghana and raised on Croydon’s Shrublands Estate, Joshua first came into the limelight in the 2016 Olympics after he knocked out his first two opponents, and ruthlessly beat top seeded fighter Abdelhafid Benchabla to secure himself a bronze medal, before being narrowly outpointed for the Silver.
Since turning Professional, Buatsi has continued to impress, stopping 9 of his 11 opponents before the final bell. In his recent bout, on the Ruiz | Joshua undercard, Buatsi saw off tough veteran Marco Antonio Periban in 4 rounds.
So what makes Buatsi so special? The polite, unassuming 26 year old displays the attributes of a perfectly educated aggressor, as he closes off the ring with fast and calculated footwork. He reserves energy and draws shots at distance with his hands low, but with a tight guard and subtle head movements up close, Buatsi is able to keep opponents in punching range, letting his shots go with fast, powerful flurries and overall excellent punch variety, unphased so far by anything he’s had to take himself. Comparisons can be made to other Boxer-Punchers, namely Kovalev, but it’s yet to be seen what sort of fighter Buatsi will be when he steps up, my prediction, a devastating one.