Anthony Joshua Wants To Retire From The Sport In Five Years
Anthony Joshua, one of boxing's exciting young heavyweights, said he wants to retire from in-ring competition in five years, if all goes according to plan.
In an article by ESPN's Nick Parkinson, Joshua said his reason for walking away from the sport when he turns 32 years old is not exactly money related, but more so simply being okay with not boxing anymore.
"Maybe I'll be around for another five years," Joshua said. "The legacy I leave will be I've come up the hard way and I've stayed true to myself. I was a kid from Finchley [in north London] who went to the gym to make something of myself, to get fit. I wasn't chasing money. I was just on a self-development course. I can finish in five years provided everything goes to plan. One hundred percent, I could walk away from boxing now, it's all about being happy, and I'm happy. As long I'm happy that is all that matters. I don't do it for the money, I don't do it for the glory nights."
Joshua is defending his IBF heavyweight title against Eric Molina on December 10. Molina was not Joshua's original opponent, when in fact Joshua was set to go up against former unified world heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko, but an injury to Klitschko derailed plans for the two meet in 2016. The two will now face off against each other for the vacant WBA heavyweight title in early 2017.
The 27-year-old's career resume is a very impressive one. As an amateur, he won the gold medal in the 2010 Great Britain Boxing Championships as a super heavyweight and placed second in the 2011 world championships in that same weight division. He then made his Olympic debut in the 2012 London Olympics, where he won the gold medal as a super heavyweight as well.
