[ad_1]
The hours drag on into the last slow week of a heavyweight world title fight and Anthony Joshua has been training into the night as a way to kill time as he sharpens his final preparations.
The IBF, WBA and WBO belt holder faces Kubrat Pulev on Saturday and typically a heavyweight champion would have cut back all forms of combat by now, but Joshua said: “The body can go soft easily. You have to stay on, shots coming towards you, measure distance, feel different shots. I want someone in the ring imitating Pulev. I want to train tonight. “
Joshua shook his head when asked if being locked in a Covid bubble had left him restless and in need of in-ring training. “No, we have always trained [in the week of the fight]. We will be in a hotel somewhere and call one of the local gyms. It is important to have someone by your side who can push you. It is good for preparation.
“I’ve never had a problem sparring with someone who gets stuck. That has been the best way and from what I’ve learned [the former world champion] Wladimir Klitschko, which is the courage to gather all the best talents in one space to challenge me as a champion. Four rounds with one, four rounds with another. I’ve been away for a year and they have me hard. They have me ready. “
Eddie Hearn, his promoter, seemed briefly alarmed when Joshua casually mentioned that he had been in the ring without a helmet on Wednesday night. “We did eight rounds, six with the main guard and two without him,” Joshua said. “Rob McCracken [his trainer] I did not like. But I know what works for me and Rob does. We work together. I could hit the pads, but they don’t hit back. The heavy bag does not move.
“Having a live opponent in front of you, moving your legs, becomes second nature. The best I can do is do what I need to replicate on Saturday. The ring here [in the hotel] He’s small so I’m going to get into the ring on Saturday and I have plenty of room to do my work. These things are important. “
McCracken has coached Joshua since he was a fan who won gold in London 2012. He made an important point when asked if Joshua had removed his helmet during the match. “It’s for the tippy-tappy stuff,” he emphasized. “When you do open combat, the helmet must remain on.”
McCracken is too considerate of a man to allow Joshua to take unnecessary risks in the ring this close to a title fight and said: “It’s not sparring like you think, it’s technical, it touches things. Just to put your coordination and attention. “
Joshua learned some valuable lessons from Klitschko, who defeated Pulev in the world title defense in 2014, when Joshua also sparred with Klitschko. “It’s crazy how the universe works. I was in a camp with Wladimir and then I fought him. [in 2017]. At the time, he didn’t really understand the implications of the way Wladimir was training. [for Pulev]But I’ve actually implemented some of the things that he did in my training for this camp. “
Sign up for The Recap, our weekly email of editor picks.
Did you learn any specific lessons that will help you beat Pulev? “Sure. Klitschko was like a heavyweight factory. He invited all the heavyweights to his training ground.”
Joshua has been an interesting mix this week of quiet nervousness and gentle good humor. The wait is almost over and it seems that his relatively unconventional, albeit mild, combat these past few nights of preparation has helped him. But he knows that dangerous and deeply serious work awaits him on Saturday.
Book and watch Anthony Joshua vs. Kubrat Pulev on December 12, live on Sky Sports Box Office
