"Saturday is all that matters" - Anthony Joshua says sparring during training is irrelevant to fight performance
Anthony Joshua recently claimed that sparring is irrelevant to a fighter's performance. The Brit is currently set to fight Oleksandr Usyk on August 20 at the Jeddah Superdome in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. 'AJ' is looking to win his titles back from the Ukrainian and move on to secure an undisputed title fight against Tyson Fury.
On August 15, 'AJ' arrived with his entourage in Saudi Arabia and was promptly interviewed by Sky Sports.
During one of the interviews, David KD Ghansa, a member of his team, revealed that the Brit has fought a minimum of 13 sparring partners while training. During an interview with 'AJ', the interviewer asked him about his sparring experience. Joshua replied saying:
"Ahh, no. I don't talk about that stuff. It's not good to talk about that stuff... All that stuff is only good for that day, right, now, it's about Saturday. Just because you've had whatever in sparring [doesn't mean anything]... it's all irrelevant man. I'm lost for words, because Saturday is all that matters."
According to Ghansa, 'AJ' has fought multiple sparring partnersโ all left-handed with light feet like Usyk โ and the Brit has been knocking some of them out. Joshua will look to translate his sparring success on to the main stage on Saturday night when he faces the Ukrainian.
Watch the full interview with Joshua below:
๐๐จ๐ฌ๐ก๐ฎ๐ ๐ก๐๐ฌ ๐๐ซ๐ซ๐ข๐ฏ๐๐! ๐จ
Anthony Joshua says 'sparring is irrelevant' as Fight Week gets going in Jeddah ๐ฌ๐ง https://t.co/2xDhzOHe9l
Anthony Joshua talks about the pros and cons of being inactive for 11 months
Anthony Joshua has not stepped foot in the ring in almost a year. His last fight was against Oleksandr Usyk in September 2021, and after that, several complications arose that delayed their scheduled rematch. Russia invaded Ukraine, so Usyk decided to return to his country to help fend off the Russian invasion, effectively forcing 'AJ' to be inactive for 11 months.
In a recent interview with Sky Sports, Anthony Joshua spoke about what being inactive did to him:
"Pros and cons. So the cons are: the time drags on, and I normally get straight back in it. Don't you? Inactivity ain't good for anyone. But the pros are: [I] feel the changes I've made personally โ training camp, training location, having to form a new team. Like making them work together is important in a training environment, and that needed time."
Anthony Joshua also revealed that he has been working with his new team for eight to ten months on this very fight. The Brit looks ready under the guidance of his new head coach Robert Garcia.
Watch Joshua's full interview with Sky Sports Boxing below:
๐ฃ๏ธ 'Mentally, refuse to be beat.'
Anthony Joshua sits down and talks through the changes he's made ahead of #UsykJoshua2. ๐ https://t.co/9R5cVayufW