Ahead of his fight against Kubrat Pulev, we look back at December 2019 when Anthony Joshua became the first heavyweight champion to reclaim his titles in a Muslim country, Saudi Arabia.
Asked post-fight, Joshua talks about the role Islam and Muslims plays in his life.
“A big role. My uncles went to Makkah, they prayed for me. It plays a big role. If a Muslim man comes to me and wants to praise blessings upon me, and pray for me, I’m going to respect that person. If a Christian man, Buddhist or a Jewish man comes to me, I’m going to appreciate their devotion to their religion.”
He then went on to say that “Islam is a great religion. It’s helped a lot of people.”
Joshua also paid tribute to the Muslims who were praying for him to be victorious in his fight:
“For me victory, of course there were a lot of Muslims who were praying for me. A lot of supporters who are Muslims were praying for me and it all leads into a positive direction and thank God we got the victory.
Besides luck, hard work & talent.. Prayer is a solid foundation. It was nice to join my brother as he led through afternoon prayer (asr) 🙏🏾 pic.twitter.com/KJ4f2lu3mP
— Anthony Joshua (@anthonyjoshua) January 17, 2017