Anthony Joshua has reflected on his recent defeat to Daniel Dubois, but the wise words Mike Tyson shared with Errol Spence Jr. could be just as relevant for the British heavyweight.
Joshua entered the ring at Wembley to face Dubois on the back of a winning streak and seemingly having shaken off his defeats to Oleksandr Usyk.
Despite being tipped to win, Dubois dominated the fight, knocking Joshua down in the first and third rounds before securing the win in the fifth.
At 34, Spence is at a similar point in his career, having not fought since his inaugural loss to Terence Crawford in 2023.
Tyson, a former heavyweight champion, offered some sage advice during an appearance on “It Is What It Is,” reminding fighters that a single defeat doesn’t mean it’s over.
“The sky is the limit,” Tyson noted. “It means nothing, a loss. He [Spence] can still make a lot of money.
“That’s what today’s warriors do [do]They lose the fight, they get discouraged, [think] Maybe I won’t do it again. That’s life – don’t get discouraged.
“In life you lose… anything. You lose your job, you lose your mother, you lose your teeth, you lose your hair, and we have to go on living, we have to go on sailing.”
Joshua’s current record is 28-4, after failing to take the IBF heavyweight title from Dubois.
Despite the setback, promoter Eddie Hearn remains hopeful about Joshua’s future, expecting him to sign a rematch clause with the 27-year-old Dubois.
AJ has already made it clear that he has no plans to retire and will apparently heed the advice of American icon Tyson.
“I’m sure he’ll exercise that rematch clause. I think that’s a given,” Hearn noted after the Wembley fight, admitting that Joshua needs to rest before taking on such a risky fight again.
“This guy [Dubois] He’s still gaining confidence, but he’s going to believe he can hurt Dubois. He’s going to believe he can beat him. But full credit to Daniel Dubois, he deserves all the credit tonight, that was a great performance from Daniel.”
Frank Warren, Dubois’ promoter, has hinted at the possibility of a future fight between Dubois and Oleksandr Usyk, after Usyk first faces Tyson Fury.
And on Saturday he said: “Everybody here saw the champion perform tonight. Two great fighters in the ring and the champion perform. And I think he did everything that was asked of him.
“He showed his courage, he showed his skills, his resilience. AJ caught him with a shot there and I was worried about that. But he caught him with a counter and that’s what happened. What a great, great fight by both guys.”