Share
11th December 2015
05:04pm GMT
Instead he's cracking jokes and despite being fresh from an intense press conference when we caught up with him, he was unreservedly calm.
The number one heavyweight prospect let us in on his preparation for the heavily-hyped fight against Dillian Whyte, what his celebratory cheat meal will be - and shared his thoughts on the controversial world heavyweight champion Tyson Fury.
Joshua: "I'd love to outshine him in the performance. Yeah I could go in there and face a war and get battered but my aim is to out class him, I want to feel great and look great doing it."
https://twitter.com/anthonyfjoshua/status/675327578132119554Ahead of throwing punches in the ring at London's O2, Whyte's been raining blows for weeks in an attempt to intimidate, but Joshua is taking the mind games in his 6ft 6inch stride.
Whyte, a 27-year-old undefeated boxer from Jamaica, has been slinging a lot of mud but the comment he keeps returning to is that Joshua is 'fake'.
"Yeah I'm not sure what that's all about," says Joshua bemusedly. "Fake? I am who I am, I'm not really sure where he got that from but whatever, let him say it."
A powerful giant, Joshua stands three inches taller than Whyte, although the underdog has weighed in two pounds heavier ahead of the long-awaited collision.
https://twitter.com/anthonyfjoshua/status/675275847138459648 The Watford-born man mountain has knocked out every one of his 14 opponents - whereas Whyte has allowed three of his to go the distance. Joshua used this in his armoury this week."I mentioned how he's got three fights that haven’t been knock-outs and he took it as a massive disrespect," said Joshua.
"Like everything I say but I meant it as a positive, as people want to know if you can go extra rounds. But you know what, it is an upper hand. You don't really want to be slogging away, you want to get in there and knock them out as soon as possible."
"My cheat meal will be a Burger King on the way home. I'll just ask for the biggest burger, I don’t ask for ten or anything stupid. Oh and apple crumble when I get in."
"No, I'm not greedy, I have to maintain the six-pack don’t I?"
"I'm walking out to Stormzy, who is coming. It will be good to have him there. I've also told them I'll walk out first. It's just another day in the office."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RqQGUJK7Na4"Oh yes. It's interesting as I've got this guy who has been saying everything under the sun, many things aren't true. But people have really stuck with me and supported me and the right people know the truth."
"I'll be focusing and savouring my last meal - a bit of fish - before the Burger King feast that is."
"I watched it last week and re-watched it [on Wednesday]. Klitschko is still very strong but perhaps the competitive edge has gone. His performance isn't what is was. You know he's an older guy now, it's interesting. That's why I'm looking forward to the re-match."
"If they did, I think Klitschko would do it. A man doesn't make the same mistake twice, or at least really try not to make the same mistake twice."
"It's not just down to us, it's you guys [in the media] as well, social media especially. Everyone is a big part of it. There's some good and bad guys but everything helps."
"All press is good press. Well, most. But to me I wouldn't want that type of press. Yeah people are talking about him but it's for the wrong reasons, that's not something I desire."
"That's a question I'll re-visit after Saturday."
(After our interview with Joshua, it was confirmed he plans to fight David Haye).
"I need to win but yes. As long as I do my job in the ring, I think everything is taking control of it outside. I have a strong support network handling business. So far so good."
"Good genes are helpful but yeah I like to keep things ticking over for my mind and health."
https://twitter.com/anthonyfjoshua/status/672709727634235393"Yeah, people say it's too much [laughs], you can't win...but I prefer it, I feel good."
https://twitter.com/KevinMitchell6/status/674634277762547712"It goes back to the Fury thing, you have to be mindful about what you're saying. That's so important and a good place to start.
"When you're in a professional position, if you want to have a drink or a smoke or whatever with your friends, keep it private. Kids and parents don't want to see or hear their role models doing that.
"I think you have to be careful about what you preach."
"Come back to me in ten fights when my face is crooked, I'm pretty sure I'll be a bit smashed up."
https://twitter.com/anthonyfjoshua/status/674910021621256192"Nah, nah, I don't mind. Women go for personality anyway, right?"
"Ain't No Love in the Heart In The City - Jay-Z rapped it, but I like the original."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WcF8Aos4XDAExplore more on these topics:
