Anthony Joshua has broken his silence in his first sighting since he was beaten by Daniel Dubois at Wembley and insists he can come back to become a world champion once again.
In a video on his Instagram account on Monday afternoon, the British heavyweight reiterated that he would not be retiring from professional boxing after he was knocked out in the fifth round by Dubois in front of a record 96,000 spectators at Wembley on Saturday.
But even amidst the noise, with some calling for Joshua to hang up his gloves, the defiant Brit insisted that he had the heart to come back and challenge at the pinnacle of the heavyweight division once again.
‘We came up short but we have got to look at all the positives and that’s the mindset that we have to have – a positive one, always,’ Joshua said in a video on his Instagram account.
A defiant Anthony Joshua has insisted that he will bounce back from his brutal defeat by Daniel Dubois and will continue to fight
Joshua suffered a devastating knockout during the fifth-round of his bout against Dubois
‘Look at what we’ve achieved in the space of 11 years and I want to thank every one of you that’s been riding with me.
‘What a rollercoaster journey. But you know what the problem is, is that it’s far from over, yet.’
Joshua, who previously held the IBF, IBO and WBO belts, has now suffered four defeats during his distinguished career.
The first came when he was bested by Andy Ruiz Jr via a technical knockout in 2019. He would recover his belts in their rematch later that year. His next losses came against Oleksandr Usyk, in 2021 and 2022, with Joshua admitting during the build up to his bout against Dubois that he had ‘been through a lot of pain’ since then.
‘Doing it once, doing it twice, doing it a third time hasn’t been easy, but I believe it’s something I can achieve,’ he told his fans on Instagram.
‘Working hard, taking the right steps forward and it’s got to come from here – more than anything,’ Joshua said, banging his fist on his chest.
‘It can’t come from any external voices or influences, it’s got to come from here [the heart]. It’s only been a day, but I’ve been sitting back thinking “I know I’ve got a lot of this [heart] man.”
Questions have been raised over whether the Brit, 34, should hang up his boxing gloves, but he insisted he would be back
Despite being unfancied by many, Dubois retained his IBF world heavyweight title at Wembley
Dubois (left) came out unloading punches on Joshua, who took a battering in the first five rounds
‘So just a video to say, thanks for your support and thanks for coming on this rollercoaster with me.
‘Keep your seatbelts tight, because deep down in here,’ he said beating his chest, ‘I know I’ve got a lot more to bring. British boxing I appreciate you and we rise up together. ‘Let’s go!’
In the immediate aftermath of the fight, Joshua had vowed to continue boxing, telling reporters: ‘And you’re probably asking, “Do I want to continue fighting?” Of course I want to continue fighting.
‘That’s why I said we took a shot at success and we came up short. And what does that mean right now?
‘Are we gonna run away? Are we going live to fight another day? And that’s what I am. A warrior’.
Joshua vowed to continue fighting despite speculation that he could retire, with the Brit stating he was a ‘warrior’
Joshua may, though, have been dealt another blow in his hopes of gaining a rematch against Dubois. His promoter Eddie Hearn has stated that Joshua and Dubois have a rematch clause and was intending on activating that arrangement.
Yet, Frank Warren told talkSPORT that Dubois has no rematch clause in his fight deal but added that his team would be open to discussing a rematch.
