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Anthony Joshua defeated Christian Prenga by second-round knockout on Saturday in Saudi Arabia, with the finishing right hand delivered in typical fashion by the former heavyweight champion. However, what transpired before that – an almost catastrophic first three minutes where Joshua was floored twice – prompted the most telling question at the post-fight press conference.
Prenga, with a record of 20-2 (20 KOs), was widely considered to have little to no chance against the far more experienced Joshua, whose record stands at 30-4 (27 KOs). Yet, the Albanian landed a right uppercut within the first 30 seconds that sent Joshua to the canvas. Although the Brit attempted to smile after getting back to his feet, he was clearly in serious trouble. While Joshua survived the scare and finished the fight as expected, many were left questioning how the 36-year-old would fare against higher-caliber opponents.
“The history of boxing tells us that punch power is the last thing to go for an aging fighter, and I think you showed that,” Wally Downes of The Sun addressed Joshua after the bout. “But the first thing that usually goes is punch resistance. We saw your power is still there. But where is your punch resistance right now?” the journalist inquired.
Joshua, who was stopped by Daniel Dubois in five rounds in his last fight against a world-class boxer two years ago, paused for a moment.
“I got up,” he responded, referring to the early knockdown he suffered against Prenga. “That happened in the first 20 seconds of the first round? I got up, took punches, weathered the storm, and came back in the second round. Boxing isn't a pretty game.”
“But that's your heart,” Downes countered.
“No, that's resilience,” Joshua retorted. “Resilience is spirit. Resilience is toughness. Resilience is everything combined. It's not just one thing. Winning isn't just one thing, it's a whole bunch of things. I showed you where I'm at. I showed you. I was in the ring with a guy who has knocked out 20 people. Boxing isn't a pretty game. If I expect to go in there and for everything to be beautiful, I wouldn't have gotten up, because that would be outside my mindset. I know it's going to be tough. I know I'm going to face dangerous opponents, so... It's not so much about punch resistance, but about being in the ring with strong boxers who are ready for anything and come to win.”
“He's strong. He's definitely strong and he hit me with a good uppercut.”
“He hit me with a good shot. So what? You overcome it, you get up, you take a few more shots, you keep going until it's your turn. Let's see who's tough now. Let's see who's the bad boy. Let's see who's rough and ready for a fight. I came out victorious. You should ask Prenga about his punch resistance. Don't ask me about mine. I'm sitting here as the winner. Do you understand me?”
“That's the way it is. That's the fact. I'm the one sitting here as the winner, so I don't have punch resistance issues.”
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