Anthony Joshua has attempted to set the record straight ahead of his fight with Daniel Dubois at Wembley later this month.

Joshua (28-3) and Dubois (21-2) will face each other in a professional bout for the first time on September 21, although they have previously sparred together.

It has long been rumoured, without much evidence, that Dubois once knocked Joshua out during a sparring session in 2016.

Those claims, which were seemingly started by unverified social media accounts, are wildly wide of the mark, according to Joshua.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Joshua said: ‘He just cracked me with a good shot. I stood on my feet. I don’t know where this whole narrative of someone turned my lights off came from.’


+4

Anthony Joshua (left) and Daniel Dubois (right) will fight at Wembley Stadium on September 21

Joshua has had his say on rumours claiming that Dubois once knocked him out while sparring
+4

Joshua has had his say on rumours claiming that Dubois once knocked him out while sparring

Joshua suggested that multiple witnesses would be able to verify his version of events, by adding: ‘There were a lot of people in the gym that day as well.

‘With me, there’s always been like an inch that makes a mile. But it’s all good.’

While Joshua has tried to address the rumours, Dubois has stayed silent on the matter, which has inadvertently fuelled speculation.

The pre-fight talk will soon be over when Joshua and Dubois meet in London in less than two weeks, both aiming to continue their recent resurgences.

Joshua, 34, is significantly older than 26-year-old Dubois but their careers are seemingly at a similar point.

Both men have had to rebuild their reputation after losses at the hands of Oleksandr Usyk.

Since being knocked out by Usyk in August 2023, Dubois has got the better of Jarrell Miller and Filip Hrgovic, while Joshua has bounced back from his double defeat by Usyk by overcoming Jermaine Franklin Jr, Robert Helenius, Otto Wallin and Francis Ngannou.

Joshua was defeated twice by Oleksandr Usyk, in 2021 and 2022, but has four wins since then
+4

Joshua was defeated twice by Oleksandr Usyk, in 2021 and 2022, but has four wins since then

Dubois lost against Usyk in 2023 but he has bounced back by winning his next two fights
+4

Dubois lost against Usyk in 2023 but he has bounced back by winning his next two fights

Dubois recently declared: ‘AJ’s been the king for a long time and on the night, I need to become a king slayer.’

He added, ‘I’m learning more about myself as a fighter, as a person, coming out of the darkness and into the light, improving all around as a fighter and as an athlete.’