Anthony Joshua admitted he needed time to decide whether to continue boxing after his knockout loss to Daniel Dubois in 2024. The answer? He is.
The two-time heavyweight world champion marked his return to the ring with a sixth-round knockout victory over YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul on Friday night in Miami.
Immediately after his victory, Joshua reiterated his desire to fight Tyson Fury in the highly anticipated all-British showdown.
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Anthony Joshua is calling for a blockbuster showdown with Tyson Fury, who beat Jake Paul. Jake vs Joshua is now available worldwide exclusively on Netflix
“I suffered a tough loss in 2024 and I just want to bounce back and move forward again,” Joshua said. “So I’m happy to be back in the ring and I know this is where I want to be.
“This was a real test for me to see if I still wanted to continue. This was a good opportunity for me to realize that this is where I want to be and that I want to get back in the ring and go again.”
Joshua’s return was unconventional, and the match between Joshua and Paul emerged as one of the most controversial matches of the crossover clash era.
Despite this, Paul barely got the gloves on the former Olympic champion until Joshua’s devastating finish broke both of his jaws.
“I needed to do better. I needed to do better,” Joshua said after the fight. “Yeah, it’s a win, but it’s not a success. I think the coaches expect more from me and I expect more from myself.
“But what can we do? I can’t turn back the clock. I have to move forward. I have to leave it in the past for now.”
“After today, you may see social media trying to bring more attention to algorithms, but for me that’s in the past. I can’t live on that victory. There’s a lot of things I need to improve on. So, yeah, I’m not satisfied.”
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Highlights of AJ’s win. Jake vs Joshua is now available worldwide exclusively on Netflix
In the lead-up to the fight, Joshua willingly accepted the responsibility of representing the sport of boxing, even as he sought to end “The Jake Paul Show,” the social media sensation where he fought both Mike Tyson and Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in his past two fights.
“There was a lot going on in this match. There was a lot of pressure and high expectations, so I had to perform,” he said. “A lot of people doubt me. I saw (WBC president) Mauricio Sulaiman put up a picture of Jake, but he didn’t put up a picture of me.
“There’s a lot of pressure because a lot of people don’t respect me. And I carried boxing on my back, and that’s what it was. I took Jake as seriously as I needed to, but most importantly, I take myself more seriously than I should. I respect myself and I respect boxing.”
Since being sensationally stopped by Dubois in the fifth round of a thrilling battle at Tottenham, Joshua’s next steps have been unclear and uncertain. It took him 12 months to reset and regroup with an eye on his next goal, especially working with Oleksandr Usyk’s team ahead of the fight with Paul.
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The best parts from Joshua’s post-fight press conference. Jake vs Joshua is now available worldwide exclusively on Netflix
“I was trying to get into boxing again,” he said. If you’re someone who has a family, I’ve found myself working away from home, having to somehow examine the decisions I’m making, having to go back home for boxing, having to make sacrifices. I had to look at my life and make the necessary changes to regain my love for the sport.
“This sport is unforgiving. If you don’t give it 100 percent attention, that belt will be ripped away from you and put on the waist of someone who will give boxing the love and attention it needs. And I wasn’t giving it enough love and attention.”
“I didn’t leave because I didn’t want to fight, I left because I knew if I was going to continue boxing I needed to be 100 percent, and that was the fact.
“I gave myself a year. I said, ‘I’ll give myself a year,’ and the year ended on September 21, 2025. I usually do a 12-week training camp, three months of training, September 21st, October 21st, November 21st, December 19th, and then I get right back in the ring.”
“For me, that was the perfect plan. I don’t want to lose focus and start socializing right now. And let’s get you going, you’re popping right now.”
