07 November 2023 , 22:03
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Anthony Joshua has rubbished rumours linking him with models Cara Delevingne and Bella Hadid.
The former heavyweight world champion insists she is single but has been rumoured to be dating several high-profile personalities. But Joshua, who has an eight-year-old on with his teenage sweetheart, denied he had been romantically involved with either of the aforementioned women.
Asked by BBC interviewer Louis Theroux if he has a girlfriend, Joshua said: "No, I don't." Pushed as to whether he would say if he did, the Londoner insisted: "Yeah, definitely. Imagine me going home to my missus now and she said, 'You denied me!'. I don't want the stress." And asked specifically about Delevigne and Hadid, Joshua said: "I haven't been with any of those girls by the way."
Joshua was in a relationship with school friend Nicole Osbourne in his teens and the two have a son JJ together. And of how he meets girls, the boxer said: "I've had girlfriends. It could be in the local supermarket, or at thew petrol station, could be anywhere."
Joshua still lives with his mum and said any future wife will be marrying into his family. "I still live with my mum. In our culture, we grew up in our own family home, we support our parents," he said "Why am I going to move out and leave my mum by herself, for some girl? Family is the most important thing. When a girl gets with me, she ain't just marrying me, she's marrying my family."
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Despite his success in the ring, Joshua has kept his persona life out of the headlines. He is currently waiting for a fight date having seen a clash with fellow former world champion Deontay Wilder delayed. The rivals had hoped to clash this year but the bout has been put back until April at the earliest.
Having lost his world titles to Oleksandr Usyk in 2021, Joshua then lost his rematch with the Ukrainian in Saudi Arabia the following year. He has notched victories over Jermaine Franklin and Robert Helenius this year as he bids to return to the summit of the sport he dominated at his peak.