The struggles of Joe Joyce have led to beliefs that the Rio 2016 silver medallist should hang up the gloves, just 16 months after he was being considered as a major threat to the heavyweight titles. Now, Joyce’s manager has weighed in with his opinion on the future of the front-footed Londoner.
Joyce’s knockout victory over Joseph Parker less than two years ago saw him claim the WBO interim title and his formidable chin and relentless pressure had many fans convinced that he could cause problems for each of Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk.
However, in typical Joyce fashion, the ageing yet relatively inexperienced big man opted to voluntarily defend that position against the division’s bogeyman Zhilei Zhang, in order to keep up his activity in preparation for a title shot.
Unfortunately, that decision proved extremely costly for ‘The Juggernaut’ as Zhang proved why he was rightfully feared by other contenders, stopping Joyce with the aid of the referee’s intervention before cracking the much-lauded chin of the Brit in the rematch – registering back-to-back knockout wins over Joyce.
The former British champion returned in an unconvincing victory over Kash Ali, before jumping into a clash with Derek Chisora last month, but once again Joyce underwhelmed and now his career and hopes of securing a world title appear to be in tatters.
In an interview with Seconds Out, Joyce’s manager Adam Morallee explained that when Joyce is not competitive against the major players in the division then he will leave the ring for good, although he doesn’t believe that time has come.
“Absolutely he should continue, if he is fit enough. He is fitter than almost all of the heavyweights out there, he is compos mentis, he should continue. We need to get the right fights for him but fights between him and top guys. When it starts to be that fights between him and top guys are not competitive, Joe should retire, I think.
“Joe isn’t the sort of person that should be wheeled out and turned into a gatekeeper or a journeyman, that is not what Joe Joyce should be doing. The minute that he starts to not be able to seriously compete at the top level, I think Joe should retire, but he is not there, a fight between him and Daniel Dubois would be very competitive.”
“I think that [advising a fighter when to retire] is the first duty of care, as a manager. It comes before money and all of those things, you owe the duty to save them from themselves, if you have to. That is why I took the decision very seriously, I sat with Joe and had medical scans, all of those kinds of things. He shouldn’t be continuing if he is not fit to do so.”
Apparently bereft of confidence, the matchmaking for Joyce’s next contest will be crucial, and there will likely be a host of opportunists hoping to get the call and possibly take advantage of the 38-year-old’s poor form. At present, 19-year-old Moses Itauma appears to be the frontrunner, but whether Frank Warren would put his strongest prospect in with the likes of Joyce remains to be seen.
Boxing Social is now on WhatsApp! Join our channel by clicking here and getting all the latest boxing news direct to your phone.