Why Sparring Anthony Joshua Was Bad For Me

Summary

In this reflective video, the speaker discusses the impact of sparring with Anthony Joshua on their boxing career. Initially beneficial, the constant sparring against a rapidly improving Joshua led to a shift from a competitive stance to mere survival, affecting their fighting style and confidence. The speaker emphasizes the importance of recognizing when sparring becomes counterproductive and advises young boxers to return to competitive sparring to maintain growth and avoid becoming a mere 'spar partner.'

Takeaways

• 🥊 The speaker emphasizes the importance of sparring with skilled opponents to improve as a boxer but warns against the pitfalls of excessive sparring with superior fighters.
• 🏅 The speaker recounts his experience sparring with Anthony Joshua and how it initially helped him improve, but later became detrimental to his development.
• 🔄 The speaker describes a transformation in his boxing style from being competitive and winning to merely surviving rounds, due to the constant sparring with Joshua.
• 💡 He suggests that if he had been coaching himself, he would have recognized the need to stop sparring when it stopped being beneficial and started being damaging.
• 🤔 The speaker reflects on his boxing style, which has been criticized for being passive and not throwing many punches, attributing this to his sparring experiences.
• 🚫 He advises young boxers and coaches to avoid sparring situations where they are consistently losing and not gaining any advantage, as it can hinder growth.
• 🔄 The speaker discusses the psychological impact of going from being a winner to a survivor in the ring and how it affected his approach to fights.
• 🛑 He shares his realization that continuous sparring with top-level fighters like Joshua led to a shift in his mentality and tactics, making him more defensive.
• 🥇 The speaker expresses pride in his past sparring sessions with Joshua but acknowledges that it was a double-edged sword for his own boxing career.
• 🔄 He explains that his current strategy in sparring is to ensure competitiveness and to avoid the role of a mere 'spar partner' that doesn't contribute to his development.
• 📚 The video serves as an insight into the world of sparring partners and the complex dynamics of growth and survival in the boxing ring.

Q & A

What was the main purpose of the video?

The main purpose of the video was to discuss the speaker's experience with sparring, particularly with Anthony Joshua, and how it negatively impacted his boxing career.

How did the speaker initially feel about sparring with Anthony Joshua?

The speaker initially felt that sparring with Anthony Joshua was amazing and that it helped him improve significantly as a boxer.

What mistake did the speaker believe he made regarding sparring?

The speaker believed he made a mistake by continuing to spar excessively with Anthony Joshua, which led to him taking a lot of damage and becoming more of a survivor than a winner.

How did the speaker's boxing style change as a result of excessive sparring with Joshua?

The speaker's boxing style changed from being competitive and focused on winning to becoming more defensive and focused on survival, which he attributes to the excessive sparring.

What advice does the speaker give to young boxers and coaches about sparring?

The speaker advises young boxers and coaches to avoid excessive sparring where they are consistently losing or just surviving, and to return to competitive sparring where they can maintain their winning mentality.

Why does the speaker believe his style became more negative and less active?

The speaker believes his style became more negative and less active because of the constant need to defend and survive during the long sparring sessions with Anthony Joshua.

How did the speaker's physical condition change over time due to sparring?

The speaker's physical condition worsened over time due to the excessive and intense sparring sessions, which led to him taking a lot of damage.

What impact did the speaker's sparring experience have on his career ambitions?

The speaker's sparring experience with Anthony Joshua affected his career ambitions negatively, as he felt it hindered his growth and potential to go further in his boxing career.

What is the speaker's current approach to sparring moving forward?

The speaker's current approach to sparring is to engage in more competitive sessions where he is on top and winning rounds, and to avoid excessive sparring that does not benefit his development.

How does the speaker feel about his past sparring with Anthony Joshua now?

While the speaker is proud of having sparred with Anthony Joshua and acknowledges his growth as a fighter, he feels that for his own growth as a boxer, it was the worst thing he ever did.

What is the speaker's perspective on the role of a sparring partner?

The speaker acknowledges that he became a sparring partner over time and that it was not beneficial for his own boxing career, as it led to a shift in his style and mentality.

Outlines

00:00

🥊 The Impact of Sparring with Anthony Joshua

The speaker reflects on their experience sparring with Anthony Joshua, noting the initial benefits of improving by facing strong competition. However, they express regret for continuing the practice as it led to a decline in their own boxing performance and physical condition. The speaker emphasizes the importance of recognizing when sparring is no longer beneficial and advises young boxers and coaches to seek competitive sparring that allows for growth and development rather than mere survival in the ring.

05:01

📉 From Winner to Survivor: The Downside of Sparring

This paragraph delves into the negative effects of excessive sparring, particularly when it becomes one-sided. The speaker shares their personal journey from being a winning boxer to someone who was merely surviving in the ring against Joshua. They discuss the impact on their fighting style, which became more defensive and less active, and the struggle to revert to their previous, more aggressive form. The speaker also addresses the misconceptions about their fighting style and the importance of moving forward with competitive sparring to regain their winning spirit.

Keywords

💡Sparing

Sparing refers to the practice of boxing or fighting without the intention to seriously hurt the opponent, often used for training purposes. In the video, the speaker discusses the impact of sparing on his boxing career, noting that while it initially helped him improve, excessive sparing against better fighters like Anthony Joshua led to a decline in his performance and a shift in his boxing style.

💡Improvement

Improvement in this context means the enhancement of skills or performance in boxing. The speaker initially believed that sparing with good fighters would lead to his improvement, as evidenced by his experience with Anthony Joshua before the Olympics, where he felt he significantly improved.

💡Survivor

A survivor in the context of the video is someone who endures a situation without necessarily thriving or winning. The speaker describes how his role in sparing sessions evolved from being competitive to merely surviving, as he was consistently outperformed by his sparring partners, particularly Anthony Joshua.

💡Physical Strength

Physical strength is the muscular power one possesses. The speaker mentions using his physical strength during sparing sessions to get closer to his opponents and to 'shut down' their attacks, indicating a shift in his strategy from an offensive to a more defensive approach.

💡Competitive

Being competitive means having the ability to contend with others effectively. The speaker reflects on how he was once competitive in his sparing sessions, winning fights and rounds, but over time, as he continued to spar with stronger opponents, he found himself struggling to maintain this competitive edge.

💡Second Best

Second best implies being inferior to someone else in a comparison. The speaker uses this term to describe his position in sparing sessions where he was no longer winning but was instead struggling to keep up with his opponents, leading to a change in his boxing style and mentality.

💡Style

Style in boxing refers to the unique way a fighter approaches and executes their techniques in the ring. The speaker's style changed from being an aggressive winner to a more defensive 'spoiler' due to the impact of excessive sparing with superior opponents.

💡Coaching

Coaching in this context involves guidance and training for improvement in a sport. The speaker mentions that many people who watch the video are interested in coaching, and he provides advice based on his experiences, emphasizing the importance of competitive sparing and recognizing when it's time to stop.

💡Damage

Damage in boxing refers to the physical harm or injury sustained during fights or training. The speaker acknowledges that the damage he took from excessive sparing was detrimental to his boxing career, affecting both his physical health and his performance.

💡Ambitions

Ambitions are strong desires to achieve something, often requiring determination and hard work. The speaker mentions that while he did not have World title ambitions, he did have the ability to go further in his boxing career, which was hindered by his experiences in sparing.

💡Insight

Insight refers to the understanding or knowledge gained from a particular experience or situation. The speaker aims to provide insight into the world of a sparing partner, sharing his personal experiences and the lessons he learned, to help others understand the implications of excessive sparing.

Highlights

The speaker reflects on their boxing career, particularly the impact of sparring with Anthony Joshua.

Initially, sparring with Joshua was seen as a significant improvement opportunity for the speaker.

The speaker recalls a shift from being competitive to merely surviving in the ring against Joshua as his skills improved.

The physical toll of constant sparring, including damage to the speaker's nose, is mentioned.

A change in the speaker's boxing style from being a winner to a 'spoiler' due to the sparring sessions is highlighted.

The speaker expresses regret for not managing their boxing development better during their early career.

The negative impact of continuous sparring without winning rounds is discussed, suggesting it's detrimental to growth.

The speaker's advice to young boxers and coaches about the importance of competitive sparring is emphasized.

The speaker's pride in sparring with Anthony Joshua, despite the personal cost to their boxing career, is noted.

The speaker's change in approach to sparring, moving towards more competitive sessions, is shared.

The speaker's realization of becoming a 'spar mate' and the implications for their boxing identity is revealed.

The struggle to break free from a defensive boxing style ingrained during sparring with Joshua is discussed.

The speaker's current efforts to spar with opponents where they can be more dominant are outlined.

The video's intent to provide insight into the life of a sparring partner and its effects on a boxer's career is clarified.

The speaker's ongoing journey to overcome the legacy of their sparring days and return to a more offensive style is shared.

Transcripts

hello everyone today's video is about um

not so much spy answering Joshua but why

that spying wasn't good for me um a lot

of people that watch this like the want

to a lot of people are like getting into

the box and getting into the coaching

and I remember when I started Joshua I

just remember thinking right if I keep

sparing this

fell I'm going to improve like you can't

not improve sparing good Fighters or or

great fighs and I made I made a huge

mistake in thinking that um sping for me

is is is the second best thing you can

do for boxing for for proving as a boxer

but with Anthony Joshua I remember

sparing him before the Olympics and I

reckon we did maybe four rounds five or

six

times um that was amazing for me like I

remember thinking wow

i' really improved off the back of it I

got so much out of it and if I could go

back in time now that would have been

that would have been it finished like

that was it

um that was it that that that was enough

that's what I needed that was that was

the that was it so what I should have

done is done that sparring you know

there was competitive rounds at the time

I was in good I was in better A lot

better shape you know I was young hungry

I was I was boxing s much at the time

and

yeah it was the right sparring but the

problem is I just kept going and going

and going and as he turned Pro the four

rounds turned into

six8 and

10 my

shape

worsened and you know what more than

that not making no

excuses cuz I I I was I was still our

fix it was around yeah I was still I

just turned Pro but he just improved you

know

and I just kept sparing 68 10 Rounds I

was up there two or three times a week

sometimes and the Damage I took inpiring

of course that's bad of course it is but

that's not what this video is about

really took a lot of damage took a lot

of

fist look at me nose that was from all

that sping but I turned into a Survivor

when I first started spying anony Josh

I was a winner you know I tell fights I

won nine not a lot of fights but I was a

winner all all I did really were win the

fight I lost I F I won all had will win

every time I sparred I won the spars

that's what I was I was knocking you out

all of a sudden I spaning Joshua two or

three times a

week and I've gone from being

competitive to now he's

improved and I'm second best I'm not

winning a single round really and that's

going on for a couple of weeks maybe a

couple of month and then he's improving

again and now I've gone from not winning

a round to just surviving the rounds

and and if I was if I was coaching me at

the time i' would been like look this is

a waste of time I wasn't getting paid I

wasn't getting nothing out of it and you

know I was unbeaten Pro I wasn't I

wasn't looking to to make a career out

of surviving in the a corner I I wanted

to be a winner

B and people always go on me all the

time like you don't throw many punches

you know uh you're a negative uh spoil

style and you know what it is it's it's

it's the sparing it's was sparing him

not so much not so much fury because

when I was young I didn't do massive

amount of rounds with him it was all all

aspiring with probably and Joyce

probably Joshua and Joyce um and since

that I start winning rounds even even

against the the kids that weren't

weren't that good I'd be a spoiler um

and it didn't make me gunshot like it

didn't make me scared of thr punches

there were no fear in me but it just

took when you sping two or three times a

week doing 18 24 30 rounds a week and

you know and I Wen thinking about

punching there was no thought of

punching hardly ever would I even I

would throw punches but they' be like go

away from me punches out of distance

punches and I'll be focused on how I'm

going to knock how I'm going to knock

his jab down to step into distance just

to shut him down completely how can I

get closer to use my physical strength

to have a rest really so in the space of

12 month I've gone from a winner given a

competitive

spars and look that that's not cuz I've

gone backwards he just improved so much

and I wish I just I wish I was there to

look after myself at the time just to go

right look if you want to keep being a

winner I don't think I ever had World

title ambitions or ability but I did

have ability to go a lot further than I

have but that that really that really

knock me back so when people always ask

why don't you throw loads of punches why

don't why aren't you more why aren't you

more uh why aren't you busy or there's

more activity I just got to put in me

box at that at that in in that stage of

my career very early on and it's just

been a a real struggle to get out of it

so my advice to any coaches out there or

young boxers if you're spying all the

time and you're coming second best to

the point where you're not getting any

work off and you're just surviving get

out of it and go back to go back to

doing what you do go back to competitive

spiring go back to when you're on top

sometimes and sometimes you're not but

it's competitive um so I was always very

proud of sparing anony Joshua I knew he'

going to be a great fighter in the ass

very proud of the rounds I shared with

him but for me and my growth as a boxer

I think it was the worst thing I ever

did to be honest I want to do this video

video for a few reasons one just to

highlight cuz people always say the

number one thing that gets asked to me

is why don't you throw more punches why

aren't you busy when you fight why are

you so negative um and you know what it

is it's just I don't even do it on

purpose I I want to throw more punches

but where some Fighters think how am I

going to land this punch you know like

some box go right I'm going to I'm going

to R this right hand how am I going to

Le this right hand I'm thinking how can

I KN that job down can I how can I slip

to the outside and then have a walk

that's just how it is I still want to

win I still want to win more than

anything but um but it's been a very

very hard thing to get out of and that's

why if you got my box wreck my last two

fights were on points cuz the

competition has dropped massively but I

are either losing or or knocking them

out because you know the spoiler tactics

do do work to a to a degree at a level

against certain like the Clark fight it

was working cuz he was he would he was

struggling before the low blows and it

worked against Webb and a few others

when you boing the top class Fighters

you know you're all teasers and

that it doesn't so moving forward I am

trying to

SP with kids that it's more competitive

and you know what where I'm where I'm On

Top um I'm winning the rounds you know

but um I spawn a couple of times and I

let them move on because I know it's no

good for them so this video today

hopefully it's um it makes sense to

people uh anyone that's watching this

you know boxes or coaches it makes sense

and uh hopefully it's just an Insight

again to the world of of a sparing

partner really I I did become a sparing

partner people said you're just a

sparing partner and over

time I wouldn't disagree with it you

know I'm I'm still trying to get out of

it now at 32 but hopefully that was an

insightful video anyway thank you