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Anthony Joshua has dismissed talk of retiring from boxing after a crushing knockout loss to Daniel Dubois at Wembley Stadium.
‘AJ’ was knocked out in the fifth round in his pursuit of a third heavyweight world title in front of a British-record crowd of over 98,000.
And while trainer Ben Davison conceded his fighter was “reckless,” Joshua maintains, despite the devastating loss, he will continue fighting.
“Always walk with your head high, we rolled the dice, for the third time, 13 world title fights, not every one has been successful, but they’ve all been fun and entertaining,” Joshua said.
“You’re probably asking if I still want to consider fighting? Of course I want to continue fighting. We took a shot at success and we came up short. What does that mean now? That we’re going to run away? We’re going to live to fight another day. And that’s what I am – I’m a warrior.
“There were a few mistakes in there but that’s the name of the game. Fine margins will cost you at the top level.
“Also before I finish, we have to give credit our opponent Daniel. When I sign up to fight opponents, I don’t really like them in my head any more. But now that it’s done, I take my hat off to him and say well done.”
And Joshua’s trainer Ben Davison maintains the rematch is winnable with a few adjustments.
“We have that fight to look at, I know some adjustments that could be made,” Davison says. “Of course, we’ll be straight at it and looking at that and looking at what we can do better.
“He got off to a shocking start, not nearly won the fight, but still in the fight after such a bad start, I’m very proud of what he showed there.
“Against such a strong fighter, a terrible situation, a lot of fighters wouldn’t keep trying how AJ did.”
While Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn claimed it is the first time he has seen Joshua hurt in his professional career.
“It’s probably the only time in his whole career I’ve seen him really hurt, it’s not bad, having won two world championships and 13 world title fights, to the point he couldn’t get up,” Hearn added.
“It’s the first time in his career that he’s been properly hurt, you never want to carry on too long, but AJ doesn’t have many miles on the clock. When Ben comes to me and says, ‘he doesn’t look the same fighter anymore’, and AJ will make that decision.
“We’ve seen the best AJ over the last year, it’s difficult to say that’s it. These are the closing chapters of his career. We have another fight with RS, Dubois is part of that plan. So too is Tyson Fury or another heavyweight. 2025 is going to be an interesting year for Joshua, against whoever, you’ll be entertained.
“Our interests are that he leaves this sport with legacy, money and his health in tact, knocked out like that you have to look at that. That was just a shot, trading with a huge right hand, it doesn’t matter who you are, you’re getting knocked out.”
