ANDREW EKEJIUBA
World heavyweight boxing champion, Anthony Joshua, has reflected on seven years in the professional side of the pugilist trade and said he wanted his ‘name to live on beyond physical form’.
Appearing on Apple Music’s Songs for Life, Joshua had an in-depth discussion of his career and spoke honestly about moving towards his final chapter.
He said on Songs for Life, “When you’re head down, plowing through, nothing makes sense because you don’t have time to look up. To see what’s being created.
“I’m just head down. I’m 30 years old now.
“I started when I was 18 and the world just started turning straight away. Challenge after challenge. Competition after competition. Trials and tribulations after trials and tribulations.
“A loss on the way. A victory on the way. But now it’s starting to make sense. And now I’m coming to the last stage of my career, 30 years old.
“It just means that I’m at a stage where I can create a real legacy that my name will live on beyond my physical form.”
When asked about his rematch with Andy Ruiz Jr., which Joshua and his team were criticised for taking immediately, he replied, “You hear everything. But it’s all-purpose for where I am now. So, at the stage and at the time, I’m walking out and I’m hearing the greats, the all-time greats saying (like Lennox Lewis), ‘Joshua is crazy for taking the rematch’ and ‘who is his team for letting him step back in the ring so soon?’ “Also, ‘he should’ve had a warm-up fight before’. That ‘British fighters are weak’ and ‘he can’t come and defeat Andy Ruiz. He’s got the quickest hands in the division.’ “But I knew I could beat him. I knew it was just a blip in my career. And I trusted my instinct to take the rematch like that.”
Joshua recently regained his four versions of the world crown and is now sitting pretty as a two-time world title-holder. His big ambition in 2021 is to land an undisputed unification with Tyson Fury, once two mandatories are out of the way. Up next is Kubrat Pulev before Oleksandr Usyk steps up to the place as WBO number one contender.