Retired Boxer Warns Heavyweight Star: "Your Greatest Asset Is Gone"

Tony Bellew wants Joe Joyce to hang up his gloves. The former cruiserweight champ, now a boxing pundit, thinks it's time for Joyce to call it quits after his recent loss to Derek Chisora.

Bellew's got a point. Joyce, known as "The Juggernaut," has hit a rough patch lately. Early last year, he was climbing the heavyweight ranks fast. But then came two fights with Zhilei Zhang. The first ended when the ref stopped it due to eye damage. The rematch? Zhang knocked Joyce out cold in the third round - a knockout that'll be in the running for KO of the year.

Things didn't get better for Joyce. He lost on points to Derek Chisora and even got knocked down. Sure, he bounced back with a win over Kash Ali, but that was a low-level fight.

Bellew knows a thing or two about when to step away. He quit boxing right after losing to Oleksandr Usyk in 2018. He even thanked the ref for "saving his life" in that fight.

In a chat with Instant Casino, Bellew didn't hold back about Joyce's situation:

"Yeah, I did predict [Chisora] would win. I've thought Joe Joyce has been done for a while. I don't think he'll ever recover from the Zhilei Zhang fight. Joe's greatest asset is his durability. Joe's greatest asset is his toughness and the way he takes punches, that's gone. When you're getting dropped in fights, it's just time for him to stop because he's so slow and so predictable."

Bellew's worry goes beyond just losing fights. He's scared Joyce might get seriously hurt if he keeps going:

"It's just an accident waiting to happen. So I hope Joe walks away because I don't want to see him get hurt. He's a lovely man. A lovely, lovely fella."

Despite these concerns, Joyce has said he'll keep fighting. But with his once-iron chin now looking shakier, many in the boxing world will be watching his next moves closely.