Fighting is a serious job, not just fun, Joshua

Former heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua has said that fighting is not fun but a very serious job. He shared that his view of the sport changed after seeing Ilia Topuria lose to Justin Gaethje at the White House.

Topuria, who was unbeaten in his professional mixed martial arts career, lost to Gaethje with a fourth-round technical knockout at UFC Freedom 250. This event took place on the White House lawn last month during Topuria’s first defence of the undisputed lightweight title.

The Georgian-Spaniard entered the fight as the favourite and thought he would win easily. Instead, he left the octagon for the first time without a win and with a badly marked face from the punishment he took.

In a recent chat with Combat Evolved, Joshua said watching the fight made him rethink how people see the sport. “It is not what people think it is. It is not all fun and games; it is a serious, serious, serious job, man,” Joshua said.

He expected Topuria to win and saw the odds were in his favour before the fight. But Joshua felt that Topuria’s celebrations before the fight might have been a mistake. “He is entitled to do what he wants, but I just took something from it, and I said get back to being untouchable, less accessible, because the fight game is so serious. You saw his face, what he went through. That is not a joke, man,” Joshua explained.

The 36-year-old is set to return to the ring against Kristian Prenga on July 25. This fight will happen a day after Tyson Fury faces Mariusz Wach. If both Joshua and Fury win their matches, a long-awaited fight between them is planned for October or November.