Fighter goads WBC champion Tyson Fury ahead of showdown with Kubrat Pulev
Anthony Joshua has said that he has become “older, wiser and more dedicated” while taking stock during the pandemic, as the 31-year-old prepares to defend his WBO, IBF and WBA heavyweight belts against Bulgarian Kubrat Pulev next Saturday in London.
Joshua insisted that life after lockdown had barely been in his thoughts as preparation for Pulev reached intense levels at his Sheffield training base, but last Saturday he watched 54-year-old Mike Tyson return to the ring in an exhibition bout with Roy Jones Jnr.
“What I really liked was his attitude, the way he conditioned his mind to overcome any obstacle, any worries. The biggest-looking men aren’t always the toughest men mentally and Mike, alongside his physical capabilities, has a warrior’s mindset. I took a lot from that.”
As for life once Covid restrictions are eased, Joshua said: “I’m not interested in partying anymore. Do you know what, I’m more dedicated than ever now. I’m older, wiser, I haven’t been boxing so long, so I’ve had to do a lot of maturing, a lot of learning about what it means to be a fighter, what it means to be heavyweight champion.”
Joshua went through a torrid 2019, losing his belts and unbeaten record to Andy Ruiz Jnr in June, then claiming them back from the Mexican-American almost a year ago to the day, in Saudi Arabia. “I’ve learnt the responsibilities of being a champion. Before I was just happy-go-lucky, going through this boxing industry with a smile on my face, but now I really understand.
“Look what Bernard Hopkins did [becoming a world champion in his fifties], the discipline that he implemented and what took him so far, look at [Wladimir] Klitschko, and how he recovered from his downfalls. It’s now just me and my team and trying to achieve good things in boxing.”
As for 39-year-old Pulev, who has lost once in a 29-fight career to Wladimir Klitschko, Joshua believes his own improvements since the men were originally scheduled to meet three years ago will make a difference at Wembley Arena, with a crowd of 1,000 permitted.
“He has been consistent but we’re the young lions coming through and those three years have taught me a lot. So this has come at a good time for me. I’m sure after my loss everybody says, ‘Oh, we’re going to exploit Anthony Joshua’s weaknesses’ and all that nonsense. We’ll see how confident he is until the first jab or right hand smashes him in the jaw.”
Joshua must come through this challenge for the biggest fight in the division – against WBC champion Tyson Fury – to go ahead in 2021, but the Briton took a sideswipe at the fact that his rival did not fight on Saturday as originally scheduled.
“He has a tough career, ups and downs, opponents not fulfilling their commitments, not fulfilling obligations,” he said. “I do think he should come over to Matchroom and 258 Management and let us handle his career. He’s a superstar in the making with the right management. He could go all the way. I see a lot of potential in Tyson, so when he’s ready he can come over and we can get this fight under way.”
Fury, added Joshua, should also have welcomed his inclusion in the BBC’s Sports Personality of the Year shortlist, rather than requesting to be removed. “He should have allowed it to build up, and he might have been awarded Sports Personality. That video he did should be him saying, ‘I’m accepting my award’ not ‘I don’t want to be a part of it’.”
Anthony Joshua v Kubrat Pulev is live on Sky Box Office on Dec 12