‘Less talk, and more action’

“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens… a time to be silent and a time to speak.”

Anthony Joshua produced a deadly finish to stop Kubrat Pulev on December 12. He declared that from then onward, he was going to do “Less talk and more action.”

Joshua seems to have lost the appetite for unnecessary talk and hype preceding boxing matches. He was happy to let his opponent do all the talking before the match, and inside the ring, he would rather let his boxing do the talking for him.

During a press conference before the match, Pulev tried to intimidate and bully him. Joshua says he wasn’t fazed by Pulev’s attempts to intimidate him.

AJ is proving to be one of the all time greats.
Pulev tried once again after their fiery weigh-in at the fighters’ rules meeting. The Bulgarian boxer weighed in first, tipping the scales to 239.7lbs. He then waited for Joshua to make his way to the stage and stood in close proximity to his opponent in a bid to ruffle his feathers. The pair almost came to blows and things began to get heated before security separated the two giants. Joshua told Pulev: “You talk too much bro.” Pulev insisted that he would be “the new” champion inside Wembley arena on Saturday, which hosted 1,000 spectators in the first UK boxing event to have fans in attendance since March.

During the match in the boxing ring on Saturday AJ kept calm and allowed his fist to do the talking after he secured a stunning ninth-round stoppage over Kubrat Pulev to remain on course for a 2021 meeting with Tyson Fury.

Ecclesiastes 3 says, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens.” The 7th verse states, “[there is] a time to be silent and a time to speak.” Perhaps, Joshua was trying to tell Pulev there is a time to speak and a time to keep silent.

The atmosphere was loud when they entered the ring. There were fireworks on stage when Joshua made his way to the boxing arena.

During the match, Joshua’s uppercut did most of the talking. Pulev’s effort to intimidate AJ proved to be mere talk, and even though the Bulgarian showed admirable durability to get off the floor after he was knocked down three times, he eventually slumped to defeat following a lethal left-right combination from the 31-year-old Joshua, who is now 24-1.

After much mutual respect in the week, a fiery weigh-in on Friday reshaped the battle line, with Joshua warning the veteran then that he needed to talk less.

Joshua’s knockout record now stands at 22 from 25 bouts. It is a hugely impressive ratio and yet there was an added level of maturity about his display at Wembley Arena.

Joshua’s next boxing match could be the ‘Battle of Britain’ with the WBC title holder Tyson Fury, who said on social media: “I want the fight, I want the fight next and I will knock him out inside three rounds.”

For now, Joshua is keeping mute, but his next match could be one of the biggest fights in the history of British boxing.