Tyson Fury admitted Anthony Joshua once gave him "a beating" in the ring during a sparring session earlier in their careers. They are set to face each other in world heavyweight unification bout in 2021. WBC champion Fury is regarded as the slight favourite should they meet, having never lost in his 31 professional fights. Speaking to BBC Radio London at the time, Fury said: "I came up yesterday from Manchester and I went down to Finchley Boxing Club. I sparred with the ABA Champion, Anthony Joshua. “He’s red hot him. He’s very good. To be honest with you, I thought I’m only going to take it easy because he’s only an amateur and he probably won’t spar again if I go mad. "He’s rushed out at me… BASH, he gave me a big upper cut right in the point of the chin. If I had a bit of a weak chin like David Pryce, I’d have been knocked out for a month. "He’s very, very, very good. He’s only young, watch out for that name! Anthony Joshua. He is one prospect for the future." Fury had only been boxing as a professional for two years when he squared off with Joshua in the practice session. But even then Fury had a good grasp on his own abilities and conceded Joshua had been more than a match for him. “I’m a good prospect. I rate myself as one of the top heavyweights in the world. He came out at me for three rounds and he gave me a beating" Fury added. "I thought, ‘oh my god, an amateur’s killing me!’. The kid’s only 20, and I’m a handful myself, but for him to put up a good performance like that against a top prospect in me, I think he’s one for the future. I would say he’s the best amateur boxer in this country, super heavyweight, by a mile.”
Source: The Mirror