10 February 2023 , 09:49
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Anthony Joshua has admitted making money is his main motivation ahead of his fight against Jermaine Franklin.
Former two-time heavyweight champion Joshua, 33, will look for his first win in over two years when he faces Franklin on April 1 at The O2 arena in London. 'AJ' lost his heavyweight titles to Oleksandr Usyk in September 2021 and failed to win them back in their rematch last August. Joshua's fight against Franklin will be his first under new trainer Derrick James, having parted ways with Robert Garcia after his second loss to Usyk.
Fans have questioned Joshua's mindset heading into his fight against Franklin, who suffered his first professional defeat last November in a controversial decision loss to Dillian Whyte. 'AJ' has insisted he is in a good place heading into his UK return but admitted that money is his main focus over the likes of world title contention and the opinions of fans.
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“Money, money, money. I like making money," Joshua said about his motivation for facing Franklin. "Straight up. This is a prizefighting sport. I've been broke, my family has been broke. I know what this s*** means. I do it because I'm good at it and I hustle hard. When it's all said and done, nobody will give care about me anymore so I've got to make the most of it whilst I'm here.
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"People will question where someone head is at, that's one thing. I think waking up every day is just a normal everyday thing, you don't think about it. So going to the gym for a fighter is just a normale everyday thing, so many fighters go to the gym every day. There's a difference when you put your heart into it. I've had to get rid a lot of distractions so I can put my heart back into the game."
Anthony Joshua faces Jermaine Franklin on April 1 (Shaun Brooks/Action Plus/REX/Shutterstock)Joshua admitted that his fear of having no money led to him building businesses outside of boxing, something that was a distraction as he tried to focus on his professional career. The Brit put his heart back into the sweet science last year and has found a passion for the sport again.
"I always built businesses outside of boxing because of the fear of going back to square one. I always tried to build an empire so when it's all said and done, I would never be able to look back and say I made stupid decisions. I made a conscious decision last year to step back and just put my heart into boxing, so I've definitely got that fire going again," Joshua added.