Anthony Joshua has revealed that Oleksandr Usyk’s team urged him to “demonstrate greatness” as the two heavyweight giants trained together ahead of the Briton’s return.
Joshua has been training with his former rival in preparation for his fight against Christian Prenga in Saudi Arabia this Saturday.
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Joshua eyeing Tyson Fury fight if he can beat Prenga this weekend
The 36-year-old boxer, a two-time world heavyweight champion, told how Usyk’s team had advised him to raise his standards even higher ahead of his expected British fight with Tyson Fury later this year.
“This is an elite team. I saw how he prepared for Rico Verhoeven (whom Usyk beat in May),” Joshua told Sky Sports.
“But, ultimately, everything depends on Usyk, and all the work depends on me. The team has given us everything we need, now all we have to do is get the job done.”
Joshua and Usyk have fought twice in 2021 and 2022.
“Anyway, I’m pretty good at what I do. I’m pretty strong. I can take, I can give, so sometimes I can just manage to do enough and still be good enough.”
“But these guys were like, ‘No.’ They want to see more. They want to see more, like show it off.
“Let’s bring out all the good things in you and improve. And my approach to training has definitely improved a lot.”
Joshua, however, admitted that training and fighting are two completely different things.
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Joshua explained that Usyk’s camp motivated him to “demonstrate his greatness”
“Sometimes in combat you don’t have that luxury to make improvements,” he explained. “You struggle because you’re at a point where there’s so much pressure on your shoulders.
“So you perform at your best, but performing at that level should be fine. This is what Usik’s team said. Your greatness should simply be something you do every day in the gym.”
“So doing it on fight night shouldn’t make any difference. You don’t have to push yourself to that level where you’re under that much pressure. It’s a do-or-die moment when you show greatness.”
“You should be able to do it from the first round.”
Joshua wants to show off his ruthless side
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Usyk previously supported Joshua in his victory over Tyson Fury
Over the course of his career, Joshua has won 29 of his 33 professional fights, with 26 of them coming by knockout.
He insists he can still show that raw aggression and will do so if his fight against Prenga comes this weekend.
“That’s the name of the game. There will be no overtime,” he said.
“If I can put an end to this, believe me, I will. But I know what my mind is telling me. I know what I need to do.
“And no matter how long it takes, I’ll be satisfied. I just need to make sure I’m a winner.”