Anthony Joshua Denies Panic Attack Rumors, Taking Loss ‘Like A Man’
Former unified heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua has no excuses for his loss to Andy Ruiz Jr. – including rumors of a panic attack leading up to the fight.
Joshua was knocked down four times by Ruiz this past weekend until the referee eventually called an end to the fight in the seventh round. In what was one of the biggest upsets in boxing history, many pointed to how Joshua was acting strange leading up to the bout:
There were also rumors of a panic attack, while one report claimed Joshua was dropped during sparring leading up to the fight. The Briton’s promoter, Eddie Hearn, would deny this, and Joshua has now come out to say the same:
“There was no contaminated food,” Joshua said on his YouTube channel. “I know there’s a lot of accusations or worries about what was wrong with me. I want to tell you this. I’m a soldier and I have to take my ups and my downs. On Saturday, I took a loss and I have to take it like a man. That’s why one of my sayings is never let success get to your head and never let failures get to your heart.
“… I warmed up really well. I had no panic attack, like. I’m not that type of person, you know me. That’s why I’m going to keep saying — I have to take my loss like a man. No blaming anyone, no blaming anything. I’m the one who went in there to perform and my performance didn’t go to plan. My game plan didn’t go to plan so I have to readjust, analyze and do my best to correct it and get the job done in the rematch.”
As for the rematch, Hearn confirmed that the clause was triggered and that it would happen in the United Kingdom in November or December. However, if they want the new heavyweight champion in Ruiz to come over there, they’ll need to stump up the money as “The Destroyer” wants $50 million.
“I would love it [the rematch] to be here in the United States or in Mexico,” Ruiz said in a recent interview (via talkSport). “Hey, it all depends with the team and what we negotiate.
“If they want me to go over there, they’ve gotta give me $50 million. If they wanna come over here – there’s just negotiations, you know.”
