BOXING
Anthony Joshua: “I will retire if I lose”
The former two-time heavyweight champion said he will hang up the gloves if he can’t get past Jermaine Franklin on Saturday at the O2 Arena in London.
All or nothing. Anthony Joshua will go “all in” in his upcoming fight against Jermain Franklin this weekend.
The British heavyweight announced he will retire from the sport in case he loses to the American, which may add some extra spice to the bout.
Joshua is aware he needs to bounce back from consecutive losses to former undisputed cruiserweight champion and current heavyweight titleholder Oleksandr Usyk, and the first step to start getting back his champion status is by getting past Franklin on Saturday.
“I will. I will retire if I lose. I’m not here to battle people. I won’t fight if people don’t want me to. It’s not even about the money. It’s about the competitor in you,” Joshua said.
Joshua: legacy vs money
AJ, who has an estimated fortune of $80 million, is aware of the fact that he doesn’t need to keep boxing if he doesn’t have the will of building a legacy anymore.
“I know that. I know when I am retired, I am going to be chilling. You lot put so much pressure on me, so when I am done, the chains will be gone. I am going to be laughing and loving life,” he added.
However, it’s unlikely to see a faded Joshua on Saturday, as he has something to prove and he’s probably at the peak of his career at the age of 33. Moreover, he recently said Tyson Fury should fight him next after negotiations for a potential Usyk bout failed.
Franklin, meanwhile, has never fought for a world title, and one of his best performances was against former heavyweight champion Dillian Whyte, who defeated the American by a controversial majority decision last November.