sport news JEFF POWELL: Anthony Joshua will need further rehab before entertaining a fight ... trends now
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The talk was fast and Furyous. The reality is likely to be pragmatic acceptance that AJ needs further rehab following the mind-numbing loss of his world titles before entertaining the Gypsy King.
Anthony Joshua’s initial gut reaction to a steady Eddie comeback win over an American absentee from the business end of the alpha-belt rankings was to send a challenging invitation to Tyson Fury.
Such is a natural-born fighter’s instinct. By the time they settled into the other side of midnight promoter Hearn and new trainer Derrick James were counselling even more caution than their flagship heavyweight had displayed in the ring.
If it were left to Joshua’s professional pride no doubt he would do his utmost to coax Fury into the Wembley Stadium summer- fest for which the British boxing public began clamouring years before Boris, Brexit, Corby, Covid, rampant knife crime and impoverishing inflation descended upon us.
Even as the conversation turned from Fury first to Dillian Whyte next – oh, don’t doubt it - Joshua was preparing himself for a wind-up onslaught from Fury’s personality. Which is as gigantic as his 6ft 9in stature.
Saturday night showed that Anthony Joshua is not ready for a fight with Tyson Fury
AJ has lot that aura that he once had to compete with the top fighters in the world
‘I would have to turn a deaf ear,’ said AJ as he held his mobile aloft in selfie-mode and impersonated one of Fury’s blistering video rants ‘I couldn’t hope to compete with him at trash-talking. I lived around the traveller community when I was young. That’s the way they are. All you can do is try to shut out the noise.
‘Boxing needs him and me to get it on. It would be an honour for me to fight him for his WBC title. But I would have to save all my energy for the fight. Whenever it comes.’
There-in lies the rub. Having watched Joshua’s wary progress through the 02 Hearn veered from recognising
