ANTHONY JOSHUA admitted he regrets publicly offering to spar Tyson Fury – but reckons he will benefit from sharing the ring with his rival.
Joshua, fresh off reclaiming the unified belts with a rematch win over Andy Ruiz Jr in Saudi Arabia, backed Fury to beat WBC king Deontay Wilder in their rematch in February.
Anthony Joshua reckons he can learn from sparring with Tyson Fury
And 6ft 6in AJ even offered to help the Gypsy King prepare for 6ft 7in heavy-hitter Wilder with some sparring sessions – which Fury accepted.
Reflecting on the decision to not keep the offer private, Joshua told iFL TV: “You know when I look back at some of the s*** I say I think, ‘Why did I say that?’
“So now we’re going to talk about it and give more publicised things to talk about!”
Despite questioning his sparring plea, AJ explained he wants Fury to win the WBC title as soon as possible, so they can fight for the unified belts.
Joshua is not confident Wilder will face him, so he offered to spar the Gypsy King in order to help the Brit best prepare to beat the Bronze Bomber – paving the way for the all-British unification.
And student of the game AJ – who sparred Fury as an amateur – also wants to learn from the best in training, even if that means working alongside his heavyweight rival.
Joshua explained: “You know what it is, Fury is a world-class fighter and I’m a world-class fighter that is still trying to improve so I can become like an elite-level fighter when I’m fighting.
“Sparring Fury is only going to do me good, in my opinion. So I’m never too big for my boots where I can’t learn anymore.
“So that opportunity, for me to spar Fury, is for my own benefit as well.
Tyson Fury accepts Anthony Joshua’s offer to help him spar for Deontay Wilder fight
“And the reason why I thought about it and the reason why it came to fruition for me is because I feel like, if Fury was to win that fight I think he would be more inclined to fight me next and quicker than Wilder would.
“So how long I’ve been waiting to fight for the championship belt, I think if Fury had it me and him would have got a deal done already now.
“So that’s why I was rooting for Fury to win because I just want to fight and collect my last belt.”
Joshua offered to spar Fury in order to help the Brit best prepare to beat the Bronze BomberCredit: AP:Associated Press
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
