Anthony Joshua announces when he plans to retire from boxing
Anthony Joshua has been discussing when he might retire from boxing, and it's sooner than you might think.
The 34-year-old boxer has been around longer than you might reckon and during that time he's had a pretty damn good career, but there might be some unfinished business before the end.
Still, the curtain must come down on every show and Joshua can't keep stepping into the boxing ring forever so he will have to retire at some point.
In an upcoming appearance on The Jonathan Ross Show which is set to be shown on ITV1 this Saturday (6 April) the boxer was asked whether he was considering hanging up the gloves for good.
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Joshua's answer might be bad news for boxing fans who were hoping to see him stick around in the ring for a good while yet.
"I’ve always said 35. I’m 35 in October," he said of potential plans to call time, but don't count him out just yet.
"I’m thinking another two years or so if my body holds out.
"I’ve set up certain businesses that I can transition into naturally which don’t rely on me being at the forefront."
Joshua may have irons in other fires but before he bows out of the ring plenty of boxing fans would love to see him fight Tyson Fury.
Of course that will have to wait as Fury has a fight against Oleksandr Usyk, the boxer who twice defeated Joshua in the ring, pencilled in for 18 May.
Fury will have to get through that before the idea of getting in a ring with Joshua could finally become a reality.
Joshua's 35th birthday falls on 15 October this year so he's only a few months away from hitting that mark where he said he'd retire, but if his body is still going strong then he's got another couple of years to fight Fury in.
"This is one of my rivals," Joshua said of a potential future fight against Fury.
"This is someone I want to compete with one day so everything he says, I’ve got it all stored in the back of my memory and when the fight happens, I’m going to use it as a lot of fuel.
"I think what they’re saying is be patient because you’ve got Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk for all the belts and then once that’s done hopefully I can kick down the door and get my opportunity."
So there you go folks, if you want AJ vs Fury you'd better hope Fury beats Usyk and heads for a collision course with Joshua.
Topics: Anthony Joshua, Boxing, Sport, Celebrity
Joe Harker