Anthony Joshua relives fight with ‘six guys’ who attacked him in the street

The British heavyweight appears on the 7 November episode of Louis Theroux Interviews

Alex Pattle
Combat Sports Correspondent
Wednesday 08 November 2023 05:57 GMT
Comments
Jimmy Sains on fights at school, ‘needle’ in the amateurs, and the debut ‘buzz’

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Anthony Joshua has told Louis Theroux about a “massive” fight he had with “six guys” in the street, showing the journalist his scars in the process.

Joshua, a former two-time world heavyweight champion, is the subject of the 7 November episode of Louis Theroux Interviews, in which “AJ” discusses his upbringing, boxing career and future plans.

In the opening segment of the episode, Theroux asks the 34-year-old: “Can I see your hands? Are those little marks from boxing?”

“Well, this one is,” Joshua replies, before Theroux adds: “What about on your knuckles?”

“You know, funny enough...” Joshua begins. “I’m not a troublesome person, I’ll be honest with you – far from troublesome – but I used to get in fights, and my skin hasn’t healed too well.

“So, this knuckle... I was going to get chicken one evening, and I ended up fighting six guys on my own. And that was just like massive – really good scrap. And I think this [one] is from the same time.”

When asked if he ever put anyone in hospital, Joshua replies: “No, no, no, no. In a coffin. No, I’m joking!”

Theroux, left, and Joshua at Finchley & District Amateur Boxing Club
Theroux, left, and Joshua at Finchley & District Amateur Boxing Club (BBC/Mindhouse Productions/Ryan McNamara)

In the latest episode of Theroux’s BBC programme, Joshua also discusses his career no longer being “fun” and his drug habits as a teenager in London.

Much of the episode focuses on Joshua’s points win over Jermaine Franklin in April, when the Briton bounced back from two straight losses to Oleksandr Usyk. AJ has since fought again, knocking out Robert Helenius in August.

Louis Theroux Interviews: Anthony Joshua airs on BBC Two on Tuesday 7 November, starting at 9pm GMT.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in