Anthony Joshua vs Andy Ruiz: Brit relishing chance to raise middle finger to his doubters

Britain’s boxing poster boy has changed in the 27 weeks since he was upended in New York

Anthony Joshua has been discussing his crucial rematch with Andy Ruiz Jr for nearly 30 minutes when he suddenly changes lanes, raises both middle fingers and holds them in front of his face.

“I’m going to that next level,” he says. “And when I win, I will be like: ‘fuck everybody!”

Although the former world heavyweight champion’s unexpected outburst appeared tongue-in-cheek, there is no doubting that the poster boy of British boxing has changed in the 27 weeks since he was upended by Ruiz in New York city.

On Saturday in Diriyah, just outside the Saudi Arabian capital of Riyadh, Joshua will get his chance at revenge against the man who dropped him four times before he was stopped in the seventh round. The Londoner reacted badly to questions regarding his mental state in the wake of defeat and insisted that he only has things to prove to himself.

“What do people think this is?” He asks nobody in particular. “This is fighting. One loss doesn’t take the spots off a cheetah.

“You can’t ask me about how I feel after a loss. You have to hold some regard to what we’re doing in this boxing industry.

“We don’t play games when it comes to boxing, we’re serious and I now after I took the loss and I’ve had time to reflect, it’s like, ‘fucking hell, I took this shit seriously’.

“I have stuff to prove to myself. That’s the main thing, I definitely have stuff I have to prove to myself. Unfortunately, it’s not a team sport, this game, so I have to prove it to myself.

“And there’s stuff when I look at it, they don’t mention the PR team, the trainers, they mention Anthony Joshua. So I have to prove it to myself and that’s the hunger, isn’t it?”

Victory in the desert kingdom will not only exorcise the gruesome demons from Manhattan but also re-establish Joshua in the argument about who is the No 1 heavyweight in the world. The IBF, WBA and WBO championship belts will also be back in his possession which should, in theory, make fights against the likes of Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury more likely and certainly more valuable.

Anthony Joshua is relishing the chance to prove his doubters wrong (Getty)

But Joshua insists he has not given a second thought to reclaiming his old hardware.

“There’s nothing I’ve missed about being world champion,” Joshua says. “I’ve always said the belt should never define the man.

“I walked as a champion before I even had a belt. You see certain fighters come along, they get to championship level and you see their whole demeanour change.

“You see the cars, the chains but I was this guy way before I had a belt round my waist. I’m the same person, through and through. With and without the belts it’s a championship mindset and a championship spirit.

“I’m not really someone who has the big trophy cabinet or something like that. This is hustle, this is grind, this ain’t about patting myself on the bath. This is strictly hustle.

It’s like killing, isn’t it? Bang; next one. Bang; next one. Bang; next one.

Andy Ruiz has been in a confident mood in the build-up to the bout (Getty)

“All we do is look forward, I don’t really care about what happened in the past. Time goes too quickly, doesn’t it?”

Joshua also revealed the extent of his most recent conversations with former opponent Wladimir Klitschko, who became synonymous with rising again after stunning stoppage defeats.

He was beaten inside the distance by Ross Puritty, Corrie Sanders and Lamon Brewster before he established himself as one of the most dominant heavyweight champions in history.

Klitschko retired in 2017 after he was beaten by Joshua on an iconic night at Wembley Stadium but the pair have grown incredibly close ever since.

“He said loads of stuff to me,” said Joshua, when asked what the pair have been discussing over the past few months. “Wlad was definitely ahead of the game.

“Even when he recently talked about coming back now, I was like ‘fuck!’ He was giving me dietary and training advice and that is maybe what people are talking about now when they see a difference in my body. Maybe that’s why – because I’ve adapted some of his teaching – that my weight may fluctuate.

“He’s more disciplined than me. He’s more diplomatic.”