Joshua reveals money is a huge motivation for him

In keeping with recent performances in the ring, Nigeria born Anthony Joshua let his guard slip for a moment when explaining his motivation for embarking on the comeback trail after three defeats in five bouts.

Forget the stuff about titles, Tyson Fury or sporting timelines. It is, he said, about the cash.

Joshua, 33, takes on Jermaine Franklin at the O2 arena on April 1.

Four years ago this would have been considered routine fare for a golden boy, but questions about Joshua’s ability have lingered since he was shocked to his core by Andy Ruiz Jr at Madison Square Garden in 2019.

Having got his WBA, WBO and IBF titles back against the Mexican-American, he has most recently suffered two defeats at the hands of Oleksandr Usyk and faces his first non-championship fight since 2015.

What keeps him going? “I like making money,” he said at a press conference. “This is a prize-fighting sport. I have been broke and my family has been broke, and I know what that shit means. I do this because I am good at it and I hustle hard and, when all is said and done, no one will care about me any more. I need to make the most of it while I am here.”

Joshua later modified this. If it had been solely about the money he would have stopped. Nevertheless, and allowing for braggadocio, it was interesting that he came out with this line rather than talking about belts.

Joshua has a new man in his corner, Derrick James, the trainer of the year, and a new approach. For years Joshua has faced allegations of being distracted by sponsorship deals and extracurricular interests, but he said this had not been down to any lack of dedication.

“I always built businesses because of the fear of going back to square one, but last year I made the conscious decision to get rid of those distractions and focus only on boxing. And I have got the fire back,” he said.

The flame faded in unedifying fashion last time out. After an improved showing in being outpointed by Usyk the second time around, he took the mic and, in many assessments, then took the mick, talking of his background, “not nice” things in Ukraine and saying he was not a 12-round fighter.

Did he think of quitting? “Nah, not really.” Now he says his head is in the right place. “It’s not just the mind, it’s your heart. It’s like being in a relationship.”

There was also a cryptic reference to events before the defeat by Ruiz. “You could see that something wasn’t right but I have never spoken about it,” he said. And he did not elaborate this time.

Franklin impressed many when being on the wrong end of a disputed decision against Dillian Whyte in November, and his camp was keen to draw the comparison with Ruiz when it comes to height and hand speed.

Eddie Hearn still thinks Joshua could take on Fury this year. Another defeat would give his golden days an irrevocably sepia hue.

Having been put on a pedestal, too prematurely for some, Joshua will be on the precipice on April Fool’s Day. Championing his ability to fight in different ways is fine, but he will need to be back to the destructive force of old if he is to regain lost ground.