Joshua opens up at last
Joshua had hinted previously that he had something to reveal about what went on before his first career defeat and, after initial hesitation, provided at least some insight to the 5 Live Boxing podcast. Theories aired in the interim had ranged form him having shown the effects of being concussed in sparring to having a seizure before the bout at Madison Square Garden. He now says he feels "back" and "focused". The two-time world heavyweight champion also said he learned a valuable lesson not to accept opponents at short notice - Ruiz was drafted in six weeks before their fight after American Jarrell Miller failed three drug tests. Joshua, who will return to the UK in the early hours of Monday morning with the IBF, WBA and WBO belts, was on the front of Sunday's Saudi newspapers, alongside Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman, who attended his fight. Despite widespread criticism of staging the bout in a country criticised for its human rights record, Joshua said he would "100%" be happy to return to the kingdom on holiday or to perform.'All challengers are welcome'
Joshua is now expected to face either the WBO's mandatory challenger - currently Ukraine's Oleksandr Usyk - or the man in the same position with the IBF, Bulgarian Kubrat Pulev. He said he was no longer interested in calling out WBC champion Deontay Wilder for a historic bout with all four world heavyweight titles on the line. Chasing a contest with compatriot Tyson Fury was also dismissed as Joshua said he hoped to focus on one "hurdle" at a time. "Looking so far ahead it can be a blurry vision looking that far out," Joshua told BBC Sport. "Sooner or later I will be looking directly at the undisputed championship of the world. "If the opportunity presents itself I will fight Wilder and Fury. Wilder has a fight with Fury in February. Once that is out of the way they can start mentioning my name. "I can't keep on fighting all the champions, the best in the division and then other people who say they want to step up don't step up. "All challengers are welcome to take on this current unified champion." Joshua said to defend his belts "on home soil would be big news" after promoter Eddie Hearn revealed he had been in discussions over a fight at Tottenham's new 60,000-capacity stadium, most likely against Pulev. "It would be mega," Joshua added. "Looking at how many people came out here shows there is still a big interest in the heavyweight division, especially now we are taking the belts back. "Sometimes it would be better against a Brit, but if not I follow the mandatories and defend them that way."DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.
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