Anthony Joshua has revealed his mindset ahead of his highly awaited rematch against Oleksandr Usyk. The pair had a pretty sober press conference today (June 21) in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The fight will take place on August 20 in Jeddah, which is why the first press conference was held in the Middle-Eastern country.
Here's what Joshua had to say about his mindset and what boxing has done for him:
"When I was a youngster I got in a little bit of trouble now and again, and you know I was blessed with a second chance and I found boxing and I took it with both hands. So if you know me and a lot of my story, you can know that I'm the comeback king. You can put me down but it's difficult to keep me down coz I always keep my spirits high."
This is not the first time Anthony Joshua has lost his belts. The Brit first lost his Unified Heavyweight titles when he fought Andy Ruiz Jr. back in 2019. The Mexican managed to dethrone the unbeaten Heavyweight Champion via technical knockout in the seventh round. However, in the rematch, which was held in Jeddah the same year, 'AJ' outboxed Ruiz to win his belts back.
He will look to do the same against Oleksandr Usyk on August 20 in the same location where he exacted his revenge against Andy Ruiz Jr.
Watch the video posted by Matchroom Boxing below:
Anthony Joshua confirms his aims to go for Undisputed title fight after Oleksandr Usyk rematch
Anthony Joshua has made it clear that his aim is to go for the Undisputed title fight if he beats Oleksandr Usyk. In the first leg of their press conference for their fight, 'AJ' spoke about what this fight means to him and what's next for him:
"The hunger is still there, as I always said from the get-go, stay hungry, just keep the motivation high. Blips happen, things happen in life but resilience, mental toughness, consistency will always prevail. So we're still on the road, still on the road to Undisputed for sure."
He continued:
"And it's just a little blip in the road but I'm focused on the target, which is sitting over there (the champion's side). I'm focused on the goal and god willing I'll perform and I'll become three-time Heavyweight Champion of the world."
The winner of this fight will look to challenge for Undisputed title. The only other belt in the division, the WBC belt, is around the waist of Tyson Fury, who is currently retired.
Watch the video uploaded by Matchroom Boxing below: