"He embodied this discipline" - Anthony Joshua details why he loves Mike Tyson

Former two-time heavyweight champion of the world Anthony Joshua has revealed that Mike Tyson was his inspiration as a fighter. The American fighter remains one of the most recognizable boxing icons to this day.

Joshua possesses similar knockout power to Tyson. In thirty fewer fights than the American, the Brit has a knockout rate of 84.62%, while his idol's is 75.86%.

The style of each fighter is vastly different, however the younger man has claimed that he was inspired by Tyson's discipline. While Joshua was speaking to the Behind the BOSS podcast, he said:

“I like Mike Tyson because he embodied this discipline. He got in a lot of trouble growing up – poverty stricken area, mum was into all sorts. [...] His criminal record was 50 pages long, so if we were looking at someone with that type of information, we’d probably say, ‘This person’s gonna fail at life, they haven’t got much going for them.’ But he changed that."

Joshua then added:

“I’m not gonna say I can be as good as him – but if the blueprint’s there, wake up early, sleep early, put the work in, believe in yourself, be a savage, then you’ve got a chance of making it. [...] I just took what I learned from him and that’s why for me he’s one of my favorites and an inspiration.”

The former Olympian was also involved in a lot of crimes during his childhood but has overcome that with discipline and hard work. The Brit will look to inspire people in the same way that Tyson inspired him.

With even the great Mike Tyson suffering six career defeats, it could give the Brit a lot of confidence to fire back into the ring. Joshua was beaten by Oleksandr Usyk for his second professional loss in September last year.

---

Where did Mike Tyson get his discipline from?

The former heavyweight champion is one of the most famous names that's involved in the boxing world. However, the American legend didn't just get to his position of fame by simply securing impressive knockout victories. He showed immense discipline to reach the elite level.

After the death of the American's mother, Lorna Tyson, Cus D'Amato adopted the young Mike Tyson. D'Amato was a key figurehead to Tyson becoming 'The Baddest Man on the Planet' as he instilled discipline and hard work into the young fighter.

After D'Amato passed away, his influence began to present itself as the superstar started to lose control of his career and go down the wrong path. This was portrayed throughout Tyson's boxing career and outside the ring with the introduction of drugs, alcohol and prison time.