Anthony Joshua has named the two standout wins of his career, remembering the immense pressure attached to both contests.
In terms of magnitude, it must be said that his showdown with Wladimir Klitschko was the most significant, given the manner in which it unfolded at Wembley Stadium.
At the time, in April 2017, Joshua was the unbeaten IBF champion and had won every fight by stoppage, swiftly becoming the biggest star in British boxing.
Klitschko, meanwhile, had not fought since getting dethroned by Tyson Fury, who upset the odds by scoring a unanimous decision victory when they collided in November 2015.
Yet the Ukrainian was still a serviceable operator at world level and, after getting dropped in round five, he stunned the Wembley crowd by flooring Joshua in the following frame.
‘AJ’ then ultimately scored an 11th-round stoppage and, given the manner in which he did so, was able to reach a new level of stardom.
During a conversation with Matchroom’s Eddie Hearn and Frank Smith on DAZN, though, the 36-year-old named wins over Dillian Whyte and Andy Ruiz Jr as his absolute best.
“Klitschko – a lot of pressure. Ruiz 2 – immense pressure. But what was the best win? Can I pick two?
“I would probably pick Dillian Whyte – maddest fight. Good, good scrap. And then [I would pick] Ruiz 2, because people were saying I should retire and that, if I didn’t win, I’d have no chance of getting back in the heavyweight rankings.”
Joshua stopped Whyte in round seven of their all-British grudge match in 2015, before exacting his revenge over Ruiz just under four years later.
After losing their first encounter via a major upset, which resulted in a sixth-round stoppage, ‘AJ’ kept to a strict gameplan and unanimously outpointed his Mexican-American rival.
