09 March 2024 , 07:00
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Anthony Joshua seemed to be the only man not shouting from the rooftop.
One by one those closest to him queued up to tell the world AJ was back with a bang. Back from the depths of despair following his double defeat by Oleksandr Usyk - and back in with a shot of becoming a three-time world champion. Even bitter long-term rival Tyson Fury couldn't help but look impressed.
He must have been wondering how he had got it so wrong against Francis Ngannou after the former UFC champion was flattened by Joshua inside two rounds in Saudi Arabia on Friday night. But as the great and good of boxing, led by promoter Eddie Hearn, sang his praises, Joshua himself played down his chances of completing his redemption story.
Urged to call out Fury and Usyk - who clash in Riyadh on May 18 - Joshua, as he so often has, passed up the opportunity. "Eddie and my team will shape my future. I’m going back to my cage and when they let me out, I’ll fight again," he said. But when the facts are laid bare, his future looks clear. Because four wins inside 11 months have turned Joshua's career around after he stormed from the ring following his second defeat by Usyk in 2022.
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None of Jermaine Franklin, Robert Helenius or Otto Wallin will win world titles, but Joshua's progression last year was evident. Ngannou may never win a boxing fight, but the devastating way Joshua bludgeoned him to the canvas was reminiscent of the killer instinct some thought had gone with his belts.
Ngannou was left out cold by Joshua (Getty Images)Even so, Hearn might rethink his declaration that Joshua is the "baddest man on the planet" after the Londoner saw off an MMA fighter dipping his toe into the boxing waters. "I'm so proud of him because there was a huge amount of pressure," Hearn said. "If we won this fight then he would fight the winner of Fury v Usyk. You're looking at the No.1 heavyweight in the world."
Both Fury and Usyk would rightly pull Hearn up on his adrenaline-fuelled boasts with Joshua likely to start as the underdog against the winner of the undisputed clash. Fury insists he will delay a potential all-British showdown by fighting Usyk twice - with October pencilled in for their rematch - but boxing's new ringmaster Turki Alalshikh has made it clear he wants Joshua to face Fury in the desert. Someone just needs to tell AJ.