Anthony Joshua furiously told his dad to "get off" him as he stormed out of the ring after his defeat to Oleksandr Usyk.
Joshua, 32, lost out to Usyk for the second time in 11 months as he came up short in his efforts to win back his three heavyweight world titles in Saudi Arabia. The Brit slammed two of his belts on the ground and left the ring in a state of rage after the loss, only to return moments later and issue a bizarre post-fight speech which left many spectators confused.
New footage has emerged of the moment Joshua stormed out of the ring, with the Brit angrily shouting "f*** sakes" before telling his dad, who was attempting to comfort him, to "get off" of him. Joshua, who is now on a two-fight losing skid, has admitted he lost control after being in a "dark place'" during the fight.
"I wish Oleksandr Usyk continued success in your quest for greatness. You are a class act champ," he wrote on social media. "I had to mentally take myself into a dark place to compete for the championship belts. I had two fights, one with Usyk and one with my emotions and both got the better of me. I’ll be the first to admit, I let my self down. I acted out of pure passion and emotion and when not controlled it ain’t great. I love this sport so so much and I’ll be better from this point on. Respect."
Joshua's actions after the fight were labelled as "embarrassing" by TV host Piers Morgan, with the presenter praising Usyk for his "resilient boxing" and the champion's nation for being "hard as nails". Usyk's boxing future looked uncertain when he took arms to help defend Ukraine from a Russian invasion early this year, but the unbeaten champion was persuaded by his country's military to make a return to the spot to rematch Joshua.
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Joshua insists he will not retire despite losing three of his past five fights, with the Brit hopeful of stepping back in the ring before the end of the year. "I spoke to Eddie [Hearn] and asked him if it’s possible to get out in November because momentum is important in boxing. Eddie said December,” he said. “If it’s about who I fight, it’s come one, come all. Whoever wants it can get it, I don’t mind."
