Anthony Joshua is a professional British boxer and a two-times unified heavyweight champion with an impressive record in the ring.
But how did he get to where he is now, and what exactly has he accomplished?
Here are some little-known Anthony Joshua facts about his professional and personal life.
Anthony Joshua Childhood Facts
1. Where was Anthony Joshua born?
Joshua was born in the Hertfordshire town Watford. Although Joshua was born and raised in England, he spent some time in Nigeria as a kid.
When he was 11 years old, he moved to Nigeria with his mother and enrolled in the Ikenne boarding Mayflower School. Six months later, at the age of 12, Joshua returned to England.
2. His childhood nickname was Femi.
In Watford, Joshua’s friends and teachers called him “femi,” “which is short for the boxer’s middle name “, luwafemi.”
His full name is Anthony Oluwafemi Olaseni Joshua OBE.
3. Joshua broke the 100m record at his school.
One of the most interesting Anthony Joshua biography facts is that the boxer was a great athlete, even as a kid. His main focus was on football and athletics, and he even broke the year Nine 100m record at his school with a time of 11.6 seconds.
4. Ben Lleyemi introduced Joshua to boxing.
Joshua was only introduced to one of the oldest sports at the age of 18 when his cousin, Ben Lleyemi, took him to a boxing gym.
Lleyemi, the 2011 ABA heavyweight champion, has said in interviews that he encouraged Joshua to take up boxing because AJ (the boxer’scurrent nickname) quickly picked up skills and was extremely determined and disciplined.
Anthony Joshua Career Facts
5. Does Anthony Joshua have an Olympic medal?
The former unified heavyweight champion has won two medals in his career. He won gold at the 2012 Olympics, and the year before, Joshua won a silver medal representing England at the 2011 World championship in the super-heavyweight division.
As an amateur boxer, Joshua also won and was awarded:
- 2 x Haringey Box Cup wins (2009 and 2010)
- 2 x ABA Champion (2010 and 2011)
- Amateur Boxer of the Year in Great Britain (2011)
- Member of the Order of the British Empire
6. The amateur record of Anthony Joshua was 40-3.
Joshua has a record of 48-3 and 18 KKO However, without walkovers, that number is closer to 40-3, with one knockout and two losses by decision.
7. AJ is one of the heaviest heavyweight champions of all time.
The boxer recorded his highest weight of 144.1kg (254 pounds) in the match against Carlos Takam that took place in the Principality Stadium in Wales on 28 October 2017.
The fight lasted 10 rounds, and Joshua retained his WBA, IBF, and IBO titles with a technical knockout.
8. Anthony Joshua fought his first professional match in 2013.
Joshua’s professional debut was on 5 October 2013 in the ring of the O2 Arena in London.
He beat the Italian boxer Emanuele Leo and finished the match in the first round when the referee declared a technical knockout.
9. Joshua has recorded a total of 24 victories.
The boxer has certainly had a successful career so far. Out of 25 bouts, Joshua has won 24 and lost only one. 22 out of those 24 wins ended by knockout.
He holds a 91% knockout-to-win ratio in world heavyweight title fights and a 63.64% overall knockout percentage.
10. Joshua lost his heavyweight title to the Ukrainian boxer Oleksandr Usyk.
One of the most talked-about bouts in 2021 was Joshua’smatch against Usyk on points.
Usyk defeated Joshua at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London in September 2021.
Anthony Joshua Achievements
Some of the many achievements of Anthony Joshua in his professional career are:
- British and Commonwealth heavyweight titles (2015 and 2016)
- Future Awards Africa Nigeria Prize in Sports (2017)
- Order of the British Empire (2018)
- Unified world heavyweight champion with (2019 and 2020)
11. How many belts has Anthony Joshua won?
Anthony Joshua has won a total of four boxing belts in his career.
- WBA (World Boxing Association)
- IBF belt (International Boxing Federation)
- WBO belt (World Boxing Organisation) and
- IBO belt (International Boxing Organisation)
However, the IBO belt is independent and not recognised by the current boxing domain, which considers Joshua a three-belt titlist.
Anthony Joshua Earnings
12. How much is Anthony Joshua’s net worth?
The boxer’s estimated net worth is £115m making him one of the richest boxers today. One of the most surprising facts about Anthony Joshua is that he only fought once in 2021.
He was expected to fight his domestic rival and WBC and The Ring champion Tyson Fury, but the bout fell through. That caused him to miss out on an estimated £100m payday.
The boxer was estimated to earn £15 million for the fight against Usyk.
In comparison, the highest-paid UFC fighter McGregor made $6 million against for the fight against Poirier.
13. Joshua’s net worth can double in 2022.
Boxing is one of the highest-paying sports in the world, which is why Joshua’s net worth can jump to £215m when he enters the ring against Oleksandr Usyk for a second time. The bout is scheduled to take place in Saudi Arabia this summer.
14. His highest-earning bout brought him £66million.
Joshua’s biggest payday came in “he Clash on the Dunes” “in his rematch with Andy Ruiz Jr. in 2019.
Other top-earning fights for Joshua include:
- Wladimir Klitschko – £15 million (2017)
- Carlos Takam – £10 million (2017)
- Andy Ruiz, Jr – £18 million (June 2019)
- Alexander Povetkin – £20 million (2018)
Interesting Facts About Anthony Joshua
15. Joshua had trouble with the law.
He was first arrested for fighting in 2007 and spent two weeks on remand in the HM Reading Prison in Berkshire, England.
He was later charged with possession with intent to supply a class B drug, to which Joshua pleaded guilty. He was sentenced to one year of community order and 100 hours of unpaid work. As a result, he was also suspended from BBritain’sboxing squad.
16. Watford has a gold post box in Joshua’s honour.
Royal Mail marked Joshua’s Olympic medal victory by painting a post box on High Street in Watford, which remains there to this day.
The postal service has painted a total of 110 gold post boxes in the town to commemorate each Olympic and Paralympic gold medal winner.
17. He worked as a bricklayer.
Joshua worked as a bricklayer during his amateur boxing career. However, he eventually gave it up to go to a training camp in Las Vegas. In an interview for the JD Official Youtube channel, Joshua said he likes bricklaying because it’s a universal skill and can be a great career starter.
18. Joshua continued to live with his mom even after amassing a fortune.
Although he has rented some expensive places occasionally, the boxer still lives with his mom in a two-bed ex-council estate in Golders Green, North London.
Joshua bought the property for her in 2013. He has said that he spent the lockdowns at his motherhouse.
19. There’s an Anthony Joshua-backed BXR boxing gym in London.
Joshua is a stakeholder in a BXR class-based training gym in London that boasts pay-to-train studios focusing on conditioning, cardio, and boxing skills, among other things.
Bottom Line
Joshua is one of the best heavyweight boxers in the world, a proud Briton, and a former unified world heavyweight champion who held the IBF, WBA (Super), IBO, and WBO titles until 2021.
He has overcome several A-listers in his boxing career and is known for his serious skills and unyielding determination, both in and out of the boxing ring.
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FAQ:
What was Anthony Joshua’s last fight like?
Joshua lost to Usyk after 12-rounds in the ring. The match stats showed that Joshua took 25 punches more from his opponent. Although they both took 52 jabs, Uysk was more effective with 93 power punches against 71 power punches from Joshua.
How rich is Anthony Joshua?
Anthony Joshua is one of the best-paid boxers in the UK, with an estimated net worth of £115m.
How many belts does Anthony Joshua have?
One of the most important Anthony Joshua facts is that he is a belt collector. The boxer has won a total of 4 belts, including IBO, WBO, IBF, and WBA, though IBO is not a recognised major body in boxing. HHe’smissing the WBC and the Ring titles which are currently held by Tyson Fury.