ALL ROADS MUST NOW LEAD TO FURY FOR PUMPED-UP AJ
ANTHONY JOSHUA was happy to let his boxing do the talking as he secured a stunning ninth-round stoppage over Kubrat Pulev to remain on course for a 2021 summit with Tyson Fury.
The WBA, WBO, IBF and IBO world heavyweight champion was initially ring-rusty on his return to action in front of 1,000 fans at Wembley Arena – the first boxing crowd allowed in the UK since coronavirus struck.
With Joshua’s shock defeat to Andy Ruiz in June last year still a fresh memory, Pulev stated he was out to take the world heavyweight champion’s crown and put the brakes on a blockbuster clash with fellow Briton Fury.
It proved to be merely talk and even though the Bulgarian showed admirable durability to get off the deck three times, he eventually slumped to defeat following a lethal left-right combination from the 31-year-old Joshua, who is now 24-1.
‘I started this game in 2013, I have been chasing all the belts, I’ve been dealing with mandatories, so of course I want a challenge,’ Joshua told the fans inside the arena afterwards.
‘I stuck to what I know best – boxing,
Respect to Tyson Fury. He’s a talented guy and he will make for good competition
looking at where I am going to put my shots and putting them together. When they are successful, they are successful, but like I said it is [about] less talk, more action.’
Joshua’s uppercut did the most damage to Pulev and on more than one occasion made him topple like a stack of blocks in Jenga – the game the Sofiaborn boxer played regularly during his time in the pre-fight bubble.
When he was not goofing around, the 39-year-old was preparing for his second shot at the world title, after losing to Wladimir Klitschko in 2014, and the chance to fulfil the wish of his late father, who dreamed of a world heavyweight champion son.
After much mutual respect in the week, a fiery weigh-in on Friday reshaped the battle lines, with Joshua warning the veteran then he needed to talk less.
In the end, what was seen on more
than one occasion was the mandatory challenger hitting the deck – twice in the third round and again in the ninth.
After he rose again, Joshua did finally
land the knockout punch with a slick combination to add a second loss to his opponent’s record. Next up could and should be WBC holder Tyson Fury, who
said on social media: ‘I want the fight, I want the fight next and I will knock him out inside three rounds.’
‘That’s good to hear,’ Joshua told the
BBC. ‘At least I can get him in the ring. That’s what we want right, so he’s on the right track.
‘Respect to Tyson Fury, he is a talented guy, got loads of fans and he will make for good competition when the time is ready.’
Hurdles in the way include WBO mandatory challenger Oleksandr Usyk and a trilogy fight between Fury and Deontay Wilder, if it is enforced.
But the consensus is the ‘Battle of Britain’ will be set up next and one of the biggest fights in the country’s boxing history will finally take place.