By Adam Baskin: In a touching moment on Saturday night, Anthony Joshua silently cried during the post-fight press conference after losing to unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk in a rematch in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Joshua (24-3, 22 KOs) let the media know how badly he had wanted to win the rematch tonight. When he was asked if he felt proud of how he rallied in the ninth round, Joshua said it was difficult for him to feel proud about how he’d performed tonight. At that point, Joshua began crying.
Promoter Eddie Hearn was quick to take over at the microphone and explain to the media why Joshua was so upset tonight.
“Am I proud of myself? It’s really hard for me to say I’m proud of myself,” said Joshua at the post-fight press conference. “I’m upset really deep down in my heart,” said AJ before beginning to cry.
“I just want him to be happy,” said Eddie Hearn about Joshua. “He’s given his whole life to the sport of boxing. When everyone in the country knows who he is and has an opinion of who he is.
“He’s in the gym with his team all the time. He’s away from him. There isn’t anyone that I know that is more dedicated to the sport than him,” said Hearn about Joshua.
“Sometimes, people don’t understand the pressure on people’s shoulders, but he’s never ducked a challenge; he’s never shirked a pressure. He’s always tried to give his time to people and always tried to inspire the next generation.
“There are people on social media that have too much to say for themselves that want to pretend they’re good people, and actually aren’t role models and aren’t ambassadors and aren’t people I would want my kids to look up to. This is someone I would want my kids to look up to.
“That responsibility is a huge burden, and he’s always felt that responsibility. If he’s out in public, he gives everybody his time. He’s one of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet, and he’s a competitor and a winner.
“When you don’t win, what you saw tonight was a raw emotion, A real person that was feeling the pressure that wanted to win so badly. People need to realize that you live in an online word where opinions and sick abuse.
“He will never tell you that the pressure that he sees and feels it, but its impossible not to. What I want to see is him happy, and what we want to see is him be active.
“Too many gaps between fights, too many stadium fights,” said Eddie Hearn.