Anthony Joshua has claimed that British boxers are not given enough respect overseas despite their recent success.
Joshua is the reigning WBA, WBO and IBF heavyweight champion, while compatriot Tyson Fury recently defeated Deontay Wilder to win the WBC equivalent, with a mega-fight between the pair in the pipeline somewhere along the way.
Joshua’s comments come after regaining his world titles in December following a victory over Andy Ruiz Jr in Saudi Arabia. The win came six months after a shock loss to the Mexican on the Brit’s United States debut where he was floored four times in a seventh round stoppage loss.
The 30-year-old admitted the rollercoaster period in his career had been a testing period.
“It was a difficult time in my career. Last year was a real tough year,” he told Sky Sports. “As a British heavyweight fighter, we never get the respect from the world media, which is governed by America to a certain degree, because we’re British.
Americans are going to take care of Americans. So when I lost… you take challenges, the goal is to win 100 per cent.” Joshua was set to defend his world titles against Kubrat Pulev at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on June 20 before the coronavirus chaos led to its postponement.
Meanwhile, Kubrat Pulev has pledged half of his purse – an estimated £2m – from his world heavyweight title fights against Britain’s Anthony Joshua to help the battle against coronavirus.
The fight – scheduled for 20 June at London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium – was postponed because of the pandemic.
Pulev, 38, is expected to earn around $5m (£4.07m) from the fight.
He said: “I will give doctors, nurses and hospitals the necessary equipment to deal with this devilish virus.”
Speaking to German newspaper Bild, he added: “I will donate 50% of the money I earn from the match with Joshua to the tireless heroes in the fight against the coronavirus.”
