British boxer Anthony Joshua recently addressed rumors that his heavyweight rival, Daniel Dubois, knocked him during sparring sessions several years ago.
The British boxers are set to face off at Wembley, where Dubois will make his first defense of the IBF title against AJ. The Ukrainian boxer Oleksandr Usyk was forced to vacate the heavyweight title, which led to interim champion Dubois being elevated to full champion status after his recent win against Filip Hrgovic.
Joshua is set to face Dubois in September
Joshua confirmed that Dubois did crack him, but he was never knocked out. AJ is scheduled to face Daniel Dubois on September 21 at Wembley. The belt was relinquished by Usyk due to his rematch with Fury later this year. Joshua is a former IBF titleholder. In a recent interview with Sky Sports, he recalled his training sessions with Dubois when both boxers were part of the Great Britain team. He described the sparring as intense but also clarified the rumors of being knocked by Dubois, stressing that although “Dynamite DDD” landed a solid punch, he stayed on his feet.
Anthony stated that he knew Daniel from the GB squad and he stayed with the squad even after turning professional, so he still trained there. AJ further revealed that he used to spar with him, but the whole conversation about him being knocked out by Dubois is false. “I don’t know where this whole story that he turned my lights off came from. There were a lot of people in the gym that day. And they have come out and said nothing happened,” said Joshua.
Joshua is determined for the upcoming clash
Joshua is determined to not be manhandled in the upcoming fight. He expressed confidence in his abilities, saying he would not allow anyone to knock him or dominate him in the ring, whether it is a sparring match or any official bout. On the other hand, Dubois downplayed the importance of previous sparring sessions and said that they took place many years ago and were not relevant to the upcoming clash. He stated that his focus is on the upcoming match not on past training experiences.
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