Joshua: Takam harder to KO than Pulev

Anthony Joshua says he believes substitute opponent Carlos Takam will be harder to knock out than Kubrat Pulev.

IBF-WBA titleholder Joshua, 28, insists he is unfazed by the late change of opponent after the Bulgarian Pulev pulled out Monday because of a right shoulder injury suffered in sparring at his Berlin training base.

But Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn had Takam on standby, and he stepped in on 12 days’ notice for the Oct. 28 fight at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium.

“In terms of style of opponent, he’s definitely harder to knock out,” Joshua told reporters at the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield, where he trains.

“He’s incredibly durable. His style means he’s harder to knock out. It’s not all about your Twitter followers, that doesn’t make you a good fighter. People say ‘this person would have been a better fight because he’s well known’.

“Remember Takam has fought [Alexander] Povetkin, [Michael] Grant, [Mike] Perez, [Joseph] Parker, [Frans] Botha. He has fought some good people but maybe because he’s not so active on social media, the general public might not know much about him.

“But he’s definitely a credible opponent and we can’t take our eye off the prize.”

Takam (35-3-1, 27 KOs), 36, is ranked No. 3 by the IBF and will count as Joshua’s IBF mandatory defence. He registered two wins since losing by unanimous decision to the now-WBO title holder Joseph Parker in May 2016.