Joshua vs. Povetkin: Cristiano Ronaldo’s training regime inspires AJ

Anthony Joshua vs. Alexander Povetkin

• What: heavyweight boxing title fight 
• Where: Wembley Stadium, London 
• When: Saturday 22 September 
• TV channel: live on Sky Sports Box Office  

British boxing star Anthony Joshua has given us an insight into how he has prepared for this weekend’s title fight against Alexander Povetkin.  

The 28-year-old takes on his Russian rival at Wembley Stadium on Saturday with his WBA Super, IBF, WBO and IBO heavyweight belts on the line.

If Joshua beats Povetkin he looks set to face either Deontay Wilder or Tyson Fury. A bout between WBC champion Wilder and Fury is expected to take place later this year. The boxing world is hoping to see a winner-takes-all showdown against Joshua next year.

For Joshua to potentially become the undisputed heavyweight champion he must first beat Povetkin. And he’s revealed how a football icon is helping his cause.

In a bid to improve his fitness and prolong his career, Joshua has studied the training regime of Juventus and Portugal star Cristiano Ronaldo. 

He told The Daily Telegraph: “Cristiano Ronaldo did a body test. He is 33, but has the body of a 21-year-old. You have to preserve your body. I could go in there and knock out Povetkin in a round or two, but then there is the eight weeks of ­intense sparring, doing 200 rounds, you have to protect your body.

Lie-ins for the champ

Joshua also revealed another tactic he’s using to be at his physical best – turning off the alarm clock and sleeping in.

In an interview with The Times, the heavyweight champion said that while boxing was “old-school” and many fighters do their road running at the crack of dawn, he’s been following the example of Vasyl Lomachenko after watching a documentary about the Ukrainian fighter.

“I saw 10.34am on a clock when he was waking up and I was like, ‘What the f***?’” said Joshua. “I rewound it to watch again – 10.34 and I’m getting up at the crack of dawn.”

“In the past, you used to train, go do your work, then train after, so you had to wake up at 5am to be done at 7am.”

Now Joshua favours later starts. “Luckily we are in a position that this is our full-time job,” he said. “When I watched a Manny Pacquiao documentary he does the same thing, [Floyd] Mayweather trains when he is ready, same with Lomachenko.

“I now wake up naturally at 8am. It looks lazy but you’re still getting the same amount of work done and in a better way.”