1 Wladimir Klitschko
Far and away the best win of Joshua’s pro career, this 2017 triumph over modern great Klitschko remains a major achievement despite the fact Klitschko was in his forties at the time. As well as being a huge scalp, the fight, which ended in round 11, was something of a classic.
2 Andy Ruiz II
Although not the most entertaining fight of Joshua’s career, carefully outpointing Ruiz in 2019 was clearly one of the most important. It came following the first loss of his pro career, after all, and therefore needed to be treated with caution – and was.
3 Alexander Povetkin
This 2018 stoppage victory, secured in round seven, saw Joshua weather an early storm before getting to grips with Povetkin and ultimately breaking him down. By the end, it was Joshua, aggressive and purposeful, doing what he does best.
4 Joseph Parker
No thriller, Joshua’s 2018 decision win over Parker in Cardiff nevertheless remains a key victory in his career, one that enabled him to add Parker’s WBO belt to the IBF and WBA belts he already owned.
5 Dillian Whyte
Although seemingly now destined to never meet again, Joshua will find comfort in the fact that he managed to stop Whyte in seven rounds in the one professional fight they have so far shared. That took place in 2015 and, while both were a touch green, Joshua was clearly the superior fighter.
6 Carlos Takam
Takam, though a late replacement, gave Joshua a decent fight in 2018 and appeared unlucky to be stopped on his feet in the 10th round. It has become a better result than it looked at the time, too, what with Takam going on to have further success in his career.
7 Charles Martin
Mocked at the time for the way in which he surrendered his IBF heavyweight belt, Martin has since rebounded from that two-round defeat to Joshua in 2016 to forge a decent career for himself as a top 20 contender.
8 Kubrat Pulev
Like Klitschko and Povetkin before him, Pulev met Joshua when sadly past his best and therefore offered only durability and stoicism in 2020. In the end, Joshua bided his time before finishing the Bulgarian in round nine.
9 Dominic Breazeale
Joshua’s first defence of his IBF heavyweight belt came against Breazeale in 2016 and was a relatively straightforward affair, too. Despite being unbeaten, Breazeale was unable to do anything to prevent Joshua grinding him down and securing a seventh-round stoppage.
10 Robert Helenius
This one, Joshua’s most recent win, saw the former heavyweight champion conclude a patient period of probing with one of the best right hands he has thrown in his pro career to date. It landed, the shot, in round seven and, such was its impact, no count was necessary.
