John Fury believes that Anthony Joshua has been vulnerable ever since his fight with Wladimir Klitschko in 2017.
Joshua recently lost to Oleksandr Usyk as he relinquished his WBA, WBO and IBF belts to the Ukrainian, while Fury’s son, Tyson Fury, defended his WBC strap for the first time against Deontay Wilder.
That was Joshua’s second career defeat, the second being to American heavyweight Andy Ruiz Jr. in 2019, but Fury Sr. believes that the seeds for that defeat were sewn in 2017.
Speaking to talkSPORT, he said: “He’s never been the same since. I think Klitschko emptied his tank in such a way that it terrified him.
“It’s done his head in mentally and he never wants to go back there again.
“You’ve seen it in his body language in the corner after going 12 rounds with Usyk. I’ve never seen nothing like it.”
Joshua has recently entertained talk of taking step-aside money instead of heading straight into an early 2022 Usyk rematch.
Following his defeat he toured gyms in Texas and California ahead of expected changes or additions to his training team.
Meanwhile, Fury Jr is expected to agree terms for a mandatory clash with fellow Briton Dillian Whyte.