Anthony Joshua: It was fight or flight when Wladimir Klitshcko floored me... it was only my character that allowed me to climb off the canvas and win
- Anthony Joshua stopped Wladimir Klitschko in 11 rounds at Wembley in April
- The IBF and WBA king was floored for the first time in his career in round six
- He said: 'When you find yourself in that situation, it becomes about character'
- Boxing news: Billy Joe Saunders fight with Avtandil Khurtsidze off after arrest
World heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua claims he had to forget everything he had been taught and dig into the depths of his character to climb off the canvas and stop Wladimir Klitschko in their Wembley blockbuster in April.
Joshua was floored in the sixth round by the 41-year-old on the way to recording an 11th-round stoppage that cemented his place at the top of heavyweight boxing.
The 27-year-old admits he faced 'a fight or flight' situation when lying on the canvas having eaten a mammoth right hand.
Anthony Joshua stopped Wladimir Klitschko in 11 rounds in front of 90,000 fans at Wembley
The 27-year-old was floored for the first time in his career in the sixth round in the April bout
The IBF and WBA king admitted he faced a 'fight or flight' situation when laying on his back
And Joshua claims it was only after asking himself whether he was willing to take more punishment that he decided to get to his feet.
'(Hitting the canvas) is the one thing I didn't train for,' he told the BBC's Graham Norton Show. 'Out of all the stuff I have trained for, this is the one thing you don't prepare for.
'So you go into that fight or flight mode where I can either stay on my back and say to myself "I've given it my all and I'm happy with going this far" or you get up and fight the extra rounds and you think "I want to go that little bit further".
'It's just that fight or flight mode because, as I said, it's not something you prepare for. So when you find yourself in that situation, I think then it becomes about character.
'So takeaway everything you been taught. You have to un-teach yourself and go into "who are you and what do you represent?". That's a fight, I'm a fighting man so I got up and carried on scrapping with him.'
Joshua recovered, however, and launched a late rally to stop the 41-year-old in the 11th round
Much was made of Klitschko's age ahead of the fight but Joshua claims 'character' was the key
It remains unconfirmed whether the two will face each other again in the autumn, with Klitschko yet to decide whether to trigger his rematch clause.
The Ukrainian was 41 by the time he stepped through the ropes at Wembley and much was made of Joshua's relative youth and freshness on fight night. But the 27-year-old believes his character, rather than Klitschko's age, was the decisive factor in the fight.
'He came in unbelievable shape, he's phenomenal and he has experience,' he said. He was knocked down, I was knocked down, we were both tired. I think it was just about character.'
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