Heavyweight champ Hrgovic begs Joshua to retire

File photo: British-Nigerian heavyweight boxer, Anthony Joshua

IBF heavyweight champion Filip Hrgovic has urged Anthony Joshua to retire, saying he feels sorry for the British-Nigerian and believes he should never fight again.

Joshua is preparing for the biggest fight of his career, a long-awaited showdown with fellow Briton Tyson Fury in Cardiff on Friday, December 11. Hrgovic, however, insists the two-time heavyweight world champion is finished.

Speaking on the Ariel Helwani Show, the Croatian said Joshua is only taking the fight because of the money on offer.

“He is done; he shouldn’t be fighting anymore, but he wants to do one more fight. I think that he is going to make a huge amount of money and he is doing it because of that, but I think that he shouldn’t be fighting anymore,” Hrgovic said.

Joshua was stopped by Daniel Dubois when he challenged for the IBF title in 2024. He returned last December with a knockout win over YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul, his first fight since joining Team Usyk and appointing Iegor Golub as lead cornerman.

His next outing in July was far less convincing, as he was dropped twice by the previously unknown Kristian Prenga before knocking out the Albanian in the second round. Joshua has since reunited with former trainer Ben Davison, who also worked in Fury’s corner in the past.

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Hrgovic said that performance left him stunned.

“When I saw that last fight, I felt sorry for him because before the fight he said that he shut all of his businesses to focus on boxing. He changed his coach for the 20th time.” He started to work with team Usyk; he did everything that he could do, and then he comes to the fight with a journeyman, and he goes down in 10 seconds!

“I couldn’t believe it. I felt sorry for him, and I think he shouldn’t be fighting anymore. Based on how he looked in his last fight, it was a disaster. He is just not there, man.”

The champion also warned Joshua against toying with the sport.

“It is not basketball, it is not soccer. In boxing you come to a point where you can’t fight anymore. It is a dangerous sport, it is a war, and I think that when you come to a point where you can’t fight, you can’t mess around with boxing,” he said.

Hrgovic is expected to make the first defence of his title against Frank Sanchez in Croatia in early 2027.