By: Sean Crose
“I will. I will retire if I lose. I’m not here to battle people. If people want me to retire I will retire.” So former WBA, WBO and IBF heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua advised the Daily Mail. “I’m not going to fight if people don’t want me to.” Joshua has had a troublesome go as of late, dropping two fights in a row to the skillful Oleksandr Usyk. The second defeat, which occurred late final summer time, was capped off by a weird incident which noticed Joshua take the ring mic and ramble to the assembled reside and broadcast viewers. It was painful to see.
Now the 24-3 Joshua will probably be returning on Saturday to face the 21-1 Jermaine Franklin at London’s O2 area. It’s a sensible comeback struggle. After dropping two in a row in main bouts to Usyk, it solely is sensible for Joshua to subsequent face an opponent who isn’t overly well-known. America’s Franklin is undoubtedly the underdog, although his solely loss got here to contender Dillian Whyte. Still, whereas Franklin will little question give it his all this weekend in London, seeing the Joshua struggle because the golden alternative it’s, Joshua will probably be getting into the ring as the favourite on Saturday.
A loss, then, would show to be catastrophic for Joshua’s profession. Hence, the Englishman’s want for retirement ought to he as soon as once more style defeat, this time on the O2. “It’s not even about the money,” Joshua mentioned. “It’s about the competitor in you. That’s what’s important.” Perhaps tellingly, Joshua seems to be prepared to talk considerably intimately with reference to hanging up his gloves. “I know when I am retired, I am gonna be chilling,” he mentioned. “I’m gonna be thinking f–k everyone. I am done.” With that being mentioned, Joshua additionally admitted within the interview that strain is solely part of the job.
Promoter Eddie Hearn weighed in on the significance of this weekend’s matchup for Joshua. “People talk about whether his career is over if he loses this fight. Well, his world title ambitions are in tatters if he loses this fight and that’s what’s important to him.” It’s clear crew Joshua is nicely conscious of the gravity of the present state of affairs. “Defeat would be devastating,” Hearn continued. “So for that reason I think he tries to distance himself and say it’s just another fight but we all know there is a lot on the line on Saturday.”
