Wladimir Klitschko is set to make his return to boxing later this month and will face off against undefeated Olympic gold medalist Anthony Joshua at the Wembley stadium. The Ukrainian has been out of the sport for more than a year since he suffered a shock defeat against Tyson Fury but is now obsessed with winning back the title.
During a recent interview, Klitschko, who will be looking to win a world heavyweight belt for the third time, said that despite losing to Fury he never felt beaten and now everyone will witness Klitschko reloaded against Joshua. The Soviet-schooled boxer said that his parallel is Mount Everest, the highest mountain in the world.
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"You can climb to the top and say 'I conquered Everest' but then you've got to run back before it takes you down. Some people made it back but not many. But Everest is still there. And is it defeated, or is it going to take another life? That is me. I started professional boxing 21 years ago and I am still here. I have four guys who have conquered me in 68 fights. The rest didn't make it. But the most amazing thing is that I'm still here. They're not," The Sun quoted Klitschko as saying.
The bout between Klitschko and Joshua is a fight between two boxers who are at two very different points in their career. Joshua is still starting out and his fight against Klitschko is set to be his biggest test yet. While for Klitschko, who turned 41 last month, he could be competing in his last fight.
The loss to Fury ended his 10-year run as an undefeated boxer in the heavyweight division but Klitschko said he learnt a lot about himself from that loss and that did not destroy him.
Klitschko is 14 years older than Joshua and his experience will certainly come into play when the two of them face off. It will be interesting to see how the first few rounds go because until now no opponent has been able to last beyond the seventh round against Joshua.
Joshua, who hails from Watford, actually sparred with Klitschko in 2014 when he was invited to be a part of his training camp and the Ukrainian said that the 20-round sparring session will help both fighters when they square off in Wembley.
"It's an advantage on both sides. We have sparred and we have been in the ring together. He got a chance to look and be in the background of my training team, my camp and got to know a lot. I got to know him in the ring. He was one of many sparring partners. Some of them I don't remember," Klitschko said.
"But Joshua stood out. Yes, I do remember him. He impressed me with his attitude. He was very raw. He carried himself well. He was very athletic and he could box. I gave him a lot of credit. He has a lot of potential and so far he has done good.
"Look, 18 fights, he's a champion and he is fighting the biggest stage in his career. Even in my career I haven't fought in a 90,000 stadium. He started young and he's had success."
Check out this video of Wladimir Klitschko training.
