Wednesday 1 July 2015 07:22, UK
Promoter Eddie Hearn says an "inevitable" clash with long-time rival Dillian Whyte will bring out Anthony Joshua's dark side.
The 25-year-old Olympic champion, who has knocked out all 13 of his professional opponents to date inside three rounds, is seen as an ambassador for the sport but has become involved in several social media rows with Whyte.
Whyte (14-0-0-KO11) famously knocked down and beat Joshua during their amateur days and, now 27, has been quietly going about his business and building an unbeaten record of his own to bargain with.
The pair traded words on Tuesday on social media, with Joshua saying: "I've asked to fight him & he refused the date. My door is always open for Dillian. When he is ready."
Whyte was quick to refute Joshua's claim in no uncertain terms but Hearn refused to be dragged in, adding via his own social media outlet: "I'll let you boys go to work in the square circle..speak soon!"
And in an exclusive interview with Sky Sports, Hearn lifted the lid on the relationship between the pair and on aspects of Joshua's character that he thinks will become more apparent in the lead up to the fight.
The Matchroom promoter said: "This is a fight that is inevitable. I've been talking to Dillian Whyte for two months regarding this fight and we're looking to make it in November or December with the possibility of getting Dillian out in the meantime.
"Fights with hostility and bad blood sell and there's enough in this one as you can find in any rivalry. I'll be meeting up with Dillian this week to finalise the fight. The fact is these two don't like each other.
"Anthony has a great image and is a great ambassador for the sport but in the ring he's a very bad man. People tend to forget that. So it's a case of being careful what you wish for.
"You know what he's going to do when he gets in the ring and out of the ring, he carries and conducts himself in a way to probably avoid confrontation. It'll be interesting to see how he adapts the mentality to the Whyte fight because that will be hostile – but that's a learning curve as well.
"You're going to see the sides of Anthony Joshua as opponents, situations and confrontations develop. He has an obligation to be a great ambassador but, unfortunately, it's the fight game.
With Anthony Joshua, you've got a bad man trying to be good. What's in him is in him.
"When you're going in to fight a man you genuinely don't like, people say that the mask will slip. It's not really a mask because he is who he is but you're going to see different sides of him. As rivalries develop, and you'll definitely see it in the Whyte fight, you'll see a different side to him.
"When the confrontation starts is when you're face to face. When he's at a press conference face to face with Whyte, that's when it's going to be interesting.
"Paul Smith said that in boxing, you've got a lot of good men trying to be bad. With Anthony Joshua, you've got a bad man trying to be good. What's in him is in him. You have to have the badness in you and he's got that, especially in the ring.
"The time to unleash that side of his personality is when he's got to go to work, in to battle and ultimately destroy people."
Last week, promoters associated with Polish heavyweight Mariusz Wach (31-1-0-KO17), who went the distance with Wladimir Klitschko in his only career defeat, claimed they had an agreement in place for the Joshua fight.
Hearn said of the situation: "We have a big fight planned for Anthony on September 12. Mariusz Wach is in the hat. It's definitely not a done deal.
"It has its pros and its cons. The pros are he's a tough guy and it'd be a good learning fight. The cons are not a lot of people know who Wach is outside of hardcore boxing fans.
"Anthony is going to have everyone calling him out because he's the hot ticket. Sometimes he'll see it and he'll phone me up and say: 'Get me them now!' But it's a case of speaking to his training team and moving at the right pace.
"Everyone that's calling him out will get a shot at him eventually – whether it's Whyte, David Haye, Tyson Fury or David Price. It's just a case of when."
