Carl Froch doesn’t pull any punches with his analysis of the sport of boxing.
The former super-middleweight world champion was inducted into the Hall of Fame after a gritty and hard-fought career with statement wins over the likes of Jermain Taylor, Jean Pascal and Mikkel Kessler.
Two high-profile victories over countryman George Groves cemented his place in British boxing history. On the night of the rematch in front of 80,000 fans at Wembley Stadium, one Anthony Joshua was fighting on the undercard in his sixth contest.
Joshua went on toe become unified world heavyweight champion and one of the biggest stars in the sport. At 35-years-old and coming off a knockout defeat to youngster Daniel Dubois, there’s no question he is coming to the end of his career.
Froch, speaking to Fight Lens, believes ‘AJ’ has nothing to stick around for and should call it now.
“I’m just honest. I just tell the truth and I think Anthony Joshua, he’s had a fabulour career based on his level of ability. He’s been ironed out a few times and that last whooping he took from Daniel Dubois looked like a hurtful one. Potentially damaging to your health.
You can have as much money as you want in the bank, 100 million, 150 million, whatever. [but] you can’t put a price on your health. The way he got knocked out looked like he’d been tasered by Dubois. Hurt in round one, ironed out in round five. Why’s he fighting?”
Froch, who himself retired in 2014 after a 35-fight campaign, believes Joshua is not fit for the top level anymore, and used his recent run of opponents as evidence.
“Since losing to Andy Ruiz, then back-to-back defeats to Oleksandr Usyk, then he’s fought Jermaine Franklin, Robert Helenius, Otto Wallin, Francis Ngannou. The minute somebody turned up with ambition, which was Dubois, he didn’t want to know. He got exposed. Now, the best thing he can do is retire.”
