When Anthony Joshua was asked what went wrong in his loss to Daniel Dubois, he gave a perfect two word answer.
AJ was knocked out at Wembley when his British opponent landed a dangerous jab in the fifth round – having also dropped the 34-year-old three times in the previous four rounds.
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The loss cost Joshua the chance to become a three-time heavyweight world champion, while Dubois retained the IBF world title.
When asked what mistake Dzan made, he said: “From the opponent.”
“Credit to him and his team, we rolled the dice hoping for success but we failed,” Joshua said.
“You know I’m very excited, you know I’m ready to get in the ring. But I’m going to keep my composure and be very professional and respect my opponent.”
Speaking in the ring after the fight, Joshua also lamented what he called “mistakes” in his performance, saying: “It was a bit of a mixed result (losing because of me and my opponent) if I’m honest.”
“My opponent was very fast, very quick. And secondly, there were too many mistakes on my part.
“But that’s the game, no matter how angry I am, it is the way it is.”
Joshua also held a brief post-fight press conference, against the advice of promoter Eddie Hearn.
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In it he said: “First of all, always walk with your head held high. We tried to succeed and unfortunately we failed. We threw the dice for the third time.
“These are 13 world title fights, not every single one of them has been successful, but every single one has been fun and entertaining.
“We are trying to make History I’m very grateful to British boxing and I think we’re doing that and I also appreciate the press and the media – the fans aren’t here but I thank them through you.”
“Do I want to continue fighting? Of course I want to continue fighting,” he said.
“That’s why I said we tried to succeed, but we failed, and what does that mean now?
Round by round: How Dubois demolished Joshua
ANTHONY JOSHUA bravely picked himself up off the floor against Daniel Dubois – until he couldn’t go on any more.
AJ was knocked down four times by Dubois in round five before a powerful counter right ended the show in dramatic fashion.
Here, SunSport’s Jack Figg gives you a round-by-round look at the Wembley battle.
round 1
Saudi Arabian national anthem booed at AJ vs Dubois but others say it was ‘best rendition on the card’ at WembleyDubois moved quickly with the jab and had Joshua bouncing around, struggling to deal with the piston-like left.
A massive right hand from Dubois sent AJ staggering backwards with his hands still down from the opening bell.
Joshua paid the price for his mistake, as he came out with his hands down and got felled by an overhand right.
Round 2
Joshua – who only survived the knockout at the bell after falling to the ground – struggles to move forward as he is hit with blows to the face.
AJ is stumbling around the ring and his guard is dangerously low again and the pressure is mounting.
Joshua is trying to get back in the fight, but his jab looks very sluggish – it looks like he can’t recover from the knockdown.
Round 3
AJ comes out with more intent, but swings wildly with a right hand and only connects with thin air.
Dubois increased the pressure and backed Joshua into the corner and scored another knockdown.
The bell sounds but then Dubois lands the ball a time or two – once again AJ is saved by the clock as the writing looks to be on the wall.
Round 4
Accident happens again, Joshua falls to the ground once again – he loses his balance the moment he touches the canvas.
The referee gave AJ another chance and Dubois landed a soft blow – which gave the challenger some relief.
Dubois slowed down as round four ended, while Joshua showed great resilience to stay in the match.
Round 5
Joshua lands a powerful right hand and Dubois’ legs buckle – a surprise turnaround looks likely.
AJ presses Dubois to the ropes and attempts one of his signature uppercuts, but the counter right hand gets there first.
Joshua is caught straight on the chin, knocked down once again and this time out for good. Dubois scores a stunning KO win.
“We will escape and live to fight another day, I am a warrior.
“And before I finish I would also like to give credit to our opponent, Daniel.
“Although it’s hard when I’m ready to fight an opponent I don’t like anymore, now that it’s done, I express my gratitude to him and congratulate him and his team.
“And also thanks to my team for the way they prepared me.
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“There were a few mistakes but that’s the name of the game, at the top level small margins can hurt you so thank you.”
Punch statistics from the bout showed that Dubois landed 40 percent of his punches on the ground, while AJ only landed 27 percent in comparison.
