AJ’s sparring rival who KO’d him backs revival despite ‘losing his aura’

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    David Price has backed his former sparring rival Anthony Joshua to come back from rock bottom after “losing his aura”.

    Former British heavyweight boxing champion Price was entering his prime in 2011 when he knocked down an up-and-coming Joshua during sparring. Price unveiled the stunning story while AJ was still at the peak of his powers in 2016, which he claims was done with the sole intention of securing himself a title shot.

    At that point, Joshua was still undefeated and the buzz surrounding his potential was endless. But the Brit’s air of invincibility has since been dismantled with three defeats to his name – one to Andy Ruiz and two to current unified champion Oleksandr Usyk.

    READ MORE: Anthony Joshua plots to call out rival Tyson Fury if he knocks out Jermaine Franklin

    The defeat to Ruiz in particular stunned the boxing world, with Price claiming it thrusted Joshua’s already-existing weaknesses into the limelight for all to see.

    Price exclusively told Daily Star Sport via DAZN Bet: “I always said he wasn’t invincible. I always knew he could be hurt and he had vulnerabilities.

    “I think he knew that himself. Which is why he trained the way he did and he worked the neck muscles like he did. But he’d be done a couple of times in sparring, and that’s ok, there’s no shame in getting knocked out as a heavyweight especially by a big puncher, like myself."

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    He added: “I woke up in Madrid the day after Liverpool won the Champions League final to news he had been beaten by Ruiz. That did surprise me, but then once that happened, I knew then that AJ had lost his invincibility, he lost his aura.”

    The unfortunate manner of Joshua’s defeat – losing his bearings after being clipped behind the ear – meant he was still the favourite for the rematch. He returned to face Ruiz six months later notably trimmed down, before putting on a boxing clinic and regaining his titles in Saudi Arabia.

    But former undisputed Cruiserweight Champion Usyk was a step too far for the Watford boxer as he was completely outclassed, first in September 2021 and then in the rematch in August 2022.

    Despite a far better showing by Joshua last year, the former Olympic champion suffered a breakdown in the ring and during his post-fight interview, seemingly having come to terms with the fact he could not beat the Ukrainian despite his best efforts. It was clear that he wasn’t the greatest heavyweight boxer in the world.

    Price said of the defeats: “Once that aura is gone, it’s very hard to get it back. I had fights where I’d won the fight before getting in the ring early on in my career when there’s a lot of hype and my reputation was preceding me with my punch power.

    “That was happening quite a lot with AJ but seeing Ruiz do that to him gave everyone that bit of hope. People were fancying their chances a little bit more. The Usyk thing definitely wasn’t a surprise because he’s an unbelievable fighter in his own right.”

    Joshua will look to make his comeback on Saturday night against 21-1 Jermaine Franklin. It will be one of the most important of his career – one that will either write him off for good or set-up a potential redemption arc.

    Price still believes there is hope for his younger contemporary, tipping AJ to go on and win another title in the future while still acknowledging he won’t have the legacy of heavyweight rival Tyson Fury.

    He said: “I still think he’s got something to say in the heavyweight title scene. It’s just not going to be the dominance that we once thought it might have been- like the Klitschko era or Tyson Fury.

    “He will still have something to say, he will still be involved in title fights, and he might win a world title again depending on what happens with the belts.”

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