UA WILL FIGHT TO BE UNDISPUTED WORLD CHAMP
who holds the WBA, IBF, WBO and IBO titles after defeating Andy Ruiz Jr last year.
Promoter Frank Warren has predicted that the all-British fight to be the undisputed heavyweight boxer could be as big as the 1966 football World Cup Final.
JAMES MOORE has put together the ultimate tale of the tapes between the pair…
Nickname:
Age: 30
Height: 6ft 6in
Weight: 16st 13lb
Reach: 82in
Background: Born in Watford, Herts, to parents of Nigerian descent, Joshua grew up on a tough estate. A top sprinter at school, he became a bricklayer before his cousin persuaded him to take up boxing aged 18.
Form: He has won 23 of his 24 fights, 21 by knockout, only losing once to Andy Ruiz Jr in June 2019 before going on to defeat the Mexican in a December re-match. Joshua won a gold medal at the 2012 London Olympics and famously defeated Wladimir Klitschko in 2017.
Diet and training: Joshua has been known to munch down 5,000 calories a day, but recently cut down on carbs to come in lighter for his re-match against Ruiz. He spends hours in the gym and does everything from high-intensity sprints to altitude training and sandpit workouts in his determination to stay lean and mean.
Love life: Despite splitting with Nicole Osbourne, mum to his four-year-old-son Joseph, AJ bought her a £500,000 pent
AJ house in north London. The boxer has been romantically linked to top stars such as Rita Ora, Cara Delevingne and Bella Hadid (below).
Wealth: Heading for £110million from fights and deals with the likes of Lucozade and Under Armour.
Lifestyle: Manager Freddie Cunningham says he’s saving his big bucks and Joshua himself claims he doesn’t “get carried away”. He still lives with social worker mum Yeta in a two-bed ex-council flat in Golders Green, north London, which he bought for her for £175,000. But he drives a personalised Range Rover, flies in a loaned £45m private jet and enjoys holidays in places such as Dubai. He owns a gym, too.
Dress sense: Dap-per Joshua wears Hugo Boss suits and likes to sport £350,000 watches.
Top trivia: He has an MBE and has several tattoos including one of Nigeria on his right shoulder with the word “Wisdom” above it. Joshua loves playing chess, watching Watford FC and eating at Nando’s for free with his VIP black card. The humble hunk is even said to reply to his own fan mail.
Low point: After suffering the shock defeat to Ruiz in June 2019, he admitted his mind was not really on the job and that “I couldn’t really remember where I was at the time”.
Controversy: Joshua once admitted: “But for boxing, I would be behind bars.” In his youth, he ended up on remand in jail and in 2011 he was arrested in possession of cannabis. He pleaded guilty and avoided prison, receiving a community order and told to carry out 100 hours of unpaid work.
Top quote: “I’m a fighter by heart, boxer by trade.”