British boxing heavyweight star Anthony Joshua provided a London Marathon runner with some inspirational advice after he was doubting he could finish the course.
More than 50,000 people took part in Sunday’s race – which is a record for the London Marathon. While thousands took part in the historic event in England’s capital, there were some who found it more difficult than others and needed some encouragement. Joshua was course-side on sponsorship duty with Lucozade as he gave out drinks and chatted to runners.
The 34-year-old is fresh off his sensational victory over former UFC star Francis Ngannou back in March. He landed a devastating right hand to topple the MMA heavyweight, putting him out cold in a terrifying scene.
Joshua, who was seen wearing a dark blue Lucozade hoodie on Sunday, gave some tips to one runner on how to reach the end of the race in a video uploaded by the drinks brand on social media.
In one interaction with a tired runner, ‘AJ’ provided some positive energy, giving a motivating speech after the competitor admitted he was mentally struggling to finish the race.
”Listen, this is where you dig deep,” the 34-year-old can be seen telling a runner as he embraces the competitor – who responded: “I’m just mentally blown up.”
The heavyweight responded: “Listen, this is where you dig deep. If you know you’re mentally blown up, it’s fine. It’s all in the mind, right? If you feel like you’re blown up, rebuild now! Take a two-minute walk, have a recap and finish the race, bro! Control your thoughts, control your mind let’s go!”
The runner, who was shown receiving a cup of Lucozade from the former heavyweight world champion, then fist bumps Joshua and continues running.
Speaking on the race, via talkSPORT, Joshua went on to commend the runners who took part: “I do a fair bit of running, but what I do, in six miles, is nothing compared to this lot – I take my hat off to those that are doing it.
“I think, what makes it different as well, is that you’ve got all these amazing people coming out to cheer them on and bringing the energy, family and friends, and people from the local community, so it also takes your mind away from the pressure of running 26 miles.
“So, before you know it, 5 miles have gone, another 5 miles have gone, you see your family and it’s amazing, the support here just spurs everyone on.”
Anthony Joshua Teases Potential Fight Date for Tyson Fury Clash
The fight could happen this year
Joshua has stepped up training over the last few weeks. That said, he’s yet to announce a date for his next fight. An exact opponent is still to be decided. It’s likely that he’ll face the winner of Daniel Dubois’ showdown with Filip Hrgovic.
However, ‘AJ’ was quizzed about his future fight plans during an interview with BBC Sport at the London Marathon. The 34-year-old revealed that Saudi Arabian boxing chief Turki Alalshikh would have a major influence on who his next opponent would be: Per The Mirror, the former two-time world heavyweight champion explained: “Boxing’s changing a lot, there is a new player, Turki Alalshikh, who is taking the world by storm. He is doing what he wants for the fans, it’s amazing.
“So if the fans demand it, I know that he will deliver. I know the fans want me and Fury, I want that. I’m not going to give away plans, but he is a man of action. It’s coming, most definitely it’s coming.”
Although the unification clash between Fury and Usyk on the 18th of May has an immediate rematch clause, Alalshikh recently suggested that may not be as set in stone as some believe. When pressed by reporters, Joshua confirmed with a smile that the plan is for him to fight in September.
