Anthony Joshua has defended his controversial speech at a Black Lives Matter rally, saying he read words written by someone else and realised their meaning only as he delivered them.
The heavyweight boxer addressed the row as the build-up to his December 11 showdown with Tyson Fury gathered pace.
Fury recently shared footage of Joshua speaking at a protest in Watford in June 2020, shortly after the death of George Floyd.
In the speech, Joshua urged people to 'abstain from spending your money in their shops' and support black-owned businesses.
He also called on the community to 'inject the vaccine' against racism.
Joshua said the address had been taken out of context and acknowledged that it could sound as though he was advocating division.
“I read a speech that was written by somebody else and, as I was reading it, I was realising what I was saying,” he told the Telegraph.
Joshua said he joined the rally because he believed what happened to Floyd was wrong, adding that he had felt pressure to speak out.
He insisted the speech did not reflect a desire to set communities against one another.
Fury had mocked his rival by captioning the video, 'This is the man who loves England', and pointed to Joshua’s recent change of corporate address to Dubai.
Joshua said he would not trade insults, describing Fury’s comments as an attempt to get under his skin.
“He’ll be trying to get under my skin, 100 per cent,” Joshua said.
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“I need to be stoic and calm. It’s nothing personal. I know what sort of person he is.”
The pair have 11 weeks until fight night, leaving plenty of time for more verbal sparring.
Joshua has already questioned Fury’s late enrolment in a voluntary anti-doping programme and mentioned his contact with Fury’s estranged uncle and former trainer, Peter Fury.
The fight is set to take place at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium, after Joshua insisted the bout be staged in Britain.
His promoter Eddie Hearn has said that decision will cost him more than £10million in additional taxes.
Joshua said he wanted to bring the contest home because he felt British boxing had not always received the respect it deserved in the United States.
“The UK has been a blessing to me,” he said, adding that the fight had fuelled debates in 'barbershops and family homes and in pubs'.
The usually measured Joshua showed a sharper edge when asked whether Saudi boxing powerbroker Turki Alalshikh and his team wanted him to lose.
“I believe that, yeah,” he replied.
Joshua added: “If you f**k with me and you want to see me lose, I will f**k you up even more.”
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