Ahead of his fight against Jermain Franklin (21 wins, one loss) this Saturday at the O2 Arena in London, Anthony Joshua stated that he will have a lot more than usual on the line.
Joshua will return to the scene of his first world title win over Charles Martin and spoke about the fight against Franklin, admitting that he will hang up his gloves if he were to lose.
“I will. I will retire if I lose. I’m not here to battle people. If people want me to retire I will retire,” he told Daily Mail.
“I’m not going to fight if people don’t want me too. It’s not even about the money. It’s about the competitor in you. That’s what’s important. It comes with the business and it comes with the territory, I know that.
“I know when I am retired, I am going to be chilling. I’m going to be thinking f**k everyone. I am done.
“You lot put so much pressure on me so when I am done, the chains are going to be gone. I am going to be laughing and loving life.”
Joshua has not won a fight since 2020, and had two losses on points to Usyk, who came from the lower light heavyweight division. Nevertheless, Joshua (24 wins, 3 losses) remains in the world top three behind fellow countryman Tyson Fury (WBC champion) and Usyk (holder of the WBA-WBO-IBF belts).
Following his Olympic gold medal in 2012, Joshua turned pro with Robert McCracken, who served as his amateur trainer and mentor. For the first time in eight years, Joshua will not fight for a world title this Saturday.
© Marca