When asked to recall his fabled sparring session with Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua admitted that he was incentivised to knock ‘The Gypsy King’ out.
The two British heavyweights are now due to collide later this year, having completed their respective warm-up fights in July and seemingly agreed to a date and location.
Fury fulfilled his end of the bargain by stopping a 46-year-old Mariusz Wach in seven rounds, while Joshua suffered two first-round knockdowns before halting Kristian Prenga in the following frame.
Based on these performances, most will make Fury a sizable favourite but, in reality, neither fighter is thought to be anywhere near his prime.
Rather, the best time for them to collide would have been around five or six years ago, when Fury was the WBC champion and ‘AJ’ had reclaimed his unified crown.
It was back in 2010, though, that the pair first encountered one another, with Fury in the development phase of his pro career and Joshua having just won an ABA title.
Back then, Joshua had read in a copy of Boxing News magazine that Fury was offering a glittering prize to whoever could knock him out in sparring and, just as luck would have it, he was presented with an opportunity to do so at his amateur boxing club.
In an interview reposted by The Stomping Ground, Joshua revealed that he did pursue the knockout but was ultimately unsuccessful.
“I remember reading: Tyson Fury’s going around different gyms sparring and, if anyone can knock him out, they get to keep his Rolex.
“I’m hungry … I was hungrier back then. So I remember him popping in the gym, and then coach says, ‘All right, Josh – you’re sparring’. Me and him just had a straight war, so what I learned about Fury was that we’ve got the same heart – we’re both fighting people and we go to war.
“I didn’t manage to knock him out; we both hit each other with some big shots.”
If Joshua and Fury do indeed meet later this year, fans will soon discover whether ‘AJ’ could earn the knockout in a professional environment.
