Anthony Joshua says he has no plans to quit the ring following a shock defeat to Anthony Dubois in their IBF heavyweight title fight on Saturday night.
The British boxer of Nigerian heritage and two-time former world heavyweight champion was knocked down thrice by fellow Briton Dubois before his eventual fifth-round knockout at Wembley Stadium in front of 96,000 fans.
The defeat was Joshua’s fourth in his professional career, and first after putting together a four-match win sequence following his double loss to Oleksandr Usyk — when he lost his WBA, IBF, WBO, and IBO heavyweight titles and failed to reclaim them.
Despite the latest debilitating defeat to hitherto less-fancied Dubois, the 34-year-old has insisted that he will not “run away” and quit boxing.
Speaking to reporters in his post-fight press conference, Joshua said: “And you’re probably asking, ‘Do I want to continue fighting?’ Of course, I want to continue fighting.
“That’s why I said we took a shot at success and came up short, and what does that mean now? We gonna [sic] run away. We gonna [sic] live to fight another day. And that’s what I am, I’m a warrior.
“We have to give credit to our opponent. I say well done to him and his team.”
Joshua has fought 32 professional fights with 28 wins and four losses. Two of his defeats have been via knockout.