Anthony Joshua on his next opponent Kubrat Pulev, retaining his motivation and being recognised by Pele

The 27-year-old was catapulted even further toward superstardom in April when he dropped and stopped Wladimir Klitschko - and now even Pele recognises who he is

Joshua insists he remains as motivated as ever (Getty)

It says much about Anthony Joshua's status in global sport that even Pele, not a noted boxing fan by any stretch, could remember the kid from Watford when their paths crossed at the GQ Awards last week.

The 27-year-old was catapulted even further toward superstardom in April when he dropped and stopped Wladimir Klitschko in their instant heavyweight classic at Wembley Stadium in front of 90,000 paying customers.

He unified the IBF and WBA world heavyweight titles that night and his crossover appeal was highlighted once again when GQ, the lifestyle and fashion magazine, named him their Sportsman of the Year for the second time running.

Now Joshua faces an altogether different test from his night at Wembley when he defends the belts against Bulgarian mandatory challenger Kubrat Pulev, a man known by very few outside of boxing circles, down the M4 at Cardiff's Principality Stadium. It is a definite step down from Klitschko, but a win over Pulev will go down as the second best victory on Joshua's record to date.

But, although 'AJ' says that training to connect regularly and violently with Pulev will be his raison d'etre over the next seven weeks, the one-man marketing machine insists he wants to connect, like Pele did, in a different way too.

On the Brazilian icon, Joshua said: “Take football away and he's a good person – he connects with everyone.

Even Pele is a fan of Joshua (Getty)

“Everyone who I saw that met him is in awe of him and he just seems to connect with people easily. He's a lovely guy. Not so much in the sport but outside of it, I definitely want to be like Pele. He's an easy going person that connected with people from different walks of life.

“The first time I came across him was in a London hotel when one of my friends called me up and said, 'Pele's in town, do you want to meet him?' You don't pass up the chance, do you?

"This time we had a little chat. I'm not sure if he's a boxing fan, but he is a fan of humanity and he remembered me from the first time we met.”

Joshua and Pulev will fight at the Principality Stadium (Getty)

On Monday, at Cardiff's Principality, Joshua had his first meeting with Pulev, the 25-1 star of Bulgarian boxing.

It has been suggested that Joshua's motivation for the fight may suffer after the disappointment of missing out on a money-spinning rematch with Klitschko, who chose to retire instead of facing him again.

“Klitschko said he had three or four good fights left in him," Joshua added. "So I thought he would have definitely fought again and I was really motivated.

“But let's leave that where it is and move forward.

“If you know me you know I can fight anywhere. I have always fought for fun. I don't need a stadium to be motivated.

“Let's get down and dirty. Even if I have 10 boring fights it would lead to a mega fight that everyone is waiting for. We are always building towards that big fight.”

Pulev has only lost one previous fight (Getty)

Joshua, who is 19-0 with all 19 inside the distance, is a huge 20/1 on favourite to beat Pulev and the temptation is to look beyond the 36-year-old, whose only loss came at the hands of Klitschko in 2014.

The Londoner admits only a clash with current WBC champion Deontay Wilder, the outspoken Alabama native, can match his bout with Klitschko for status. But even then he does not think he will ever repeat the sort of drama served up at the national stadium in the spring.

Now, Joshua says, he is motivated by a desire to ensure none of his opponents ever hear the final bell.

When asked whether any fight can be as big as his one with Klitschko, he said: “No. Only Wilder.

“By that I mean the hype of Wilder might, but I don't think any fight can live up to that Klitschko one.

“I'm going into my fourth year as a professional so I've still got a long way to go. I've still got 10 years left in boxing. If I'm battling for motivation now it will be a struggle.

“But this is heavyweight boxing, you have to knock someone out. It is like with the Klitschko fight, we had to get him out. It is not the same going the distance.

“You can't leave it to the judges, you have to make the decision yourself. The lighter guys you can understand it may not happen because there is not so much weight behind the punch.

“But these big guys, bang, you have to knock them out. Nobody comes to a boxing match to watch a 12-round fight, it gets boring.”

Joshua vs Wilder is the fight the fans want to see (Getty)

Despite starting as a huge outsider, Pulev is actually the far more experienced fighter having had his professional debut just months after Joshua first walked into the Finchley Amateur Boxing Club.

He also believes a tough upbringing back home in Sofia will stand him in good stead for the two-belt clash.

Pulev said: “He has had a good career, however he hasn't got my experience. I started boxing when I was 12 years old. I am a lot more experienced in amateur boxing.

“And it is not just the ring where I am experienced. I have experience on the streets as well, which is another advantage.

“Were those experiences on the street frightening? Maybe for my opponents it was very scary, but for me it was OK.

I don't think Klitschko was prepared to take a risk to win the fight. If he would have risked it, he could have won the fight.

“Will I be prepared to take that risk? Of course.”