Whyte, Klitschko and Ruiz – Anthony Joshua’s most important fights
The 31-year-old has faced many challenges during his rise to the top of heavyweight boxing.
Anthony Joshua makes the first defence of his second reign as world heavyweight champion when he faces Kubrat Pulev on Saturday at Wembley’s SSE Arena.
It will be his first fight since he regained his WBA, WBO, IBF and IBO belts from Andy Ruiz Jr in Saudi Arabia last December.
Here, the PA news agency identifies the five most important bouts to date which saw Joshua get to this point in his career.
Joshua v Erislandy Savon – London, August 2012
It is tempting to wonder whether Joshua’s route to the top would have been quite so smooth had justice been served in his opening bout of the 2012 Olympics. Most ringside observers scored clearly in favour of the experienced Cuban, but Joshua sneaked the verdict by a single point and the rest, as they say, is history.
Joshua v Dillian Whyte – London, December 2015
Joshua v Wladimir Klitschko – Wembley, April 2017
Joshua v Andy Ruiz Jr – New York, June 2019
Joshua v Andy Ruiz Jr II – Saudi Arabia, December 2019
Everything was on the line when Joshua stepped into the ring at the Diriyah Arena to face Ruiz Jr for a second time. The response was a slick display, with the former champion sticking to a back-foot game plan to win back his belts on points before the heavens opened in Saudi Arabia. Largely resisting Ruiz Jr’s attempts to engage in another scrap, Joshua continued to pick off the rounds and dance away from trouble to become world heavyweight champion for a second time.
