Anthony Joshua had some frosty words for old foe Dillian Whyte at the press conference for his comeback fight on April 1st against Jermaine Franklin.
Whyte boxed Franklin back in November of last year, and when asked about that fight Joshua made his feelings on the Brixton man quite clear when he was referred to as his ‘mate’.
Speaking to ID Boxing, Joshua replied:
“He’s not my mate, he’s not my mate.”
“I think he waffles – he has a lot to say. He should focus on his own career.”
Joshua and Whyte locked horns in an epic British title fight all the way back in 2015, which culminated in a brutal sixth round knockout for ‘AJ.’
Since then, both men have established themselves as world level heavyweights, and talk of a potential rematch has been incessant.
A second meeting appears to be on the cards for this summer at Wembley Stadium, however that all hangs on Joshua getting past Franklin in just under two months time.
The American gave a good performance in defeat to Whyte, with some observers feeling he was perhaps hard done by not to get the decision.
That was the first blemish on his professional career, and Joshua can ill afford to take his eyes off ‘The 989 Assassin’ if he has aspirations of becoming a three time heavyweight champion of the world.
In saying this, the Brit goes into the contest as a firm favourite, and there is hope that the link up with new trainer Derrick James will bring out the characteristics that made him so successful in his early career.
There is a perception that Joshua has become slightly tentative since his shock stoppage to Andy Ruiz Jr back in 2019, and a plethora of pundits have stated that the aggressive style James instills in his fighters could be the perfect remedy to this.