Joshua vows to beat Helenius in round one Saturday night as the fight nearly collapses

Former two-time heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua is ready to impress on Saturday night when he faces Robert Helenius at the O2 Arena in London.

Helenius comes in as a late replacement after original opponent Dillian Whyte was removed from the fight after testing positive for a banned substance.

Last Saturday, Helenius picked up stay-busy stoppage victory - and backed away from a family vacation to accept a last-minute offer to compete in London.

Should Joshua prevail, he will move forward to a potential showdown with former WBC champion Deontay Wilder.

Back in October of last year, Wilder blew away Helenius in one round.

There will certainly be comparisons between the performances by Joshua and Wilder - when it comes to Helenius.

“I can’t fail. That’s good pressure. Fight hard and win,” Joshua said.

“They’re always going to be comparisons, but this is my fight with Helenius. Not Wilder’s fight, or anyone else’s fight. It’s just me and him.”

Because there is so much at stake, Joshua will not overlook the danger of Helenius.

“It’s the wrong mindset with Helenius. He is going to roll the dice. What’s he got to lose? It’s going to be a good fight but I want to take him out in round one if I can. I need to take him out. Helenius has got to worry about me, and I’ve got to worry about myself," Joshua said.

Meanwhile, Joshua's bout with Helenius almost collapsed just days after the Finnish heavyweight stepped up to replace Whyte.

Helenius demanded to wear the same gloves as Joshua as a row left their heavyweight clash in doubt on Friday.

The Finnish man mountain was fuming with the gloves chosen by his rival ahead of Saturday’s clash at the O2. Helenius, 39, was not impressed with the padding in the Leone gloves that AJ’s camp manager David Ghansa picked out for his man to wear.

Joshua was not in the room when the row erupted as Helenius’ team demanded a change of gloves. The Finn was given a choice from various brands but was not happy with Joshua’s pair, which was chosen from a collection of Leone ones.

They continually tried to show that the padding was different in the gloves chosen than the others. However, the British Boxing Board of Control official in the room confirmed that they were approved for use in this country.

That left Helenius fuming as he started pointing his finger at Joshua’s team and said he wanted the same gloves.

Matchroom Boxing CEO Frank Smith was brought in to help sort the row and was in heated discussions with Helenius’ trainer Johan Lindstrom. Ghansa then got involved and assured Helenius’ team that they would have no problem, with the Finn wearing the same gloves and that a pair would be brought in for him.