Undefeated WBA and IBF World heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua (20-0, 20 KO’s) continues to show that he is very much in touch with his Nigerian roots.
For his fight against Carlos Takam this Saturday, October 28, Joshua, whose parents Robert and Yeta both hail from the Sagamu in Ogun State, Nigeria, walked out to the ring to the sounds of “Ojuelegba.”
“Ojuelegba” is a hit record by Nigerian pop star Wizkid, which was featured on his 2014 sophomore “Ayo.”
The 28-year-old Joshua (full name Anthony Oluwafemi Olaseni Joshua), is beloved in the UK, where he was born. He won Olympic gold for them in 2012. Last April, a record 90,000 packed England’s Wembley Stadium to watch his epic bout versus heavyweight great Wladimir Klitschko.
For this bout, 78,000 filled the stands at Principality Stadium in Cardiff Wales. Joshua would go on to successfully defend his titles a fourth time, stopping Cameroon’s Takam in the tenth round.
“Oh, Anthony Joshua,” the crowd sang as he walked to the ring.
In his parents’ hometown of Sagamu, the memorial hall in honour of his great-grandfather has been filled to the brim by indigenes of the town who gathered to watch the fight from huge screens.
Joshua didn’t let them down. He controlled the action from the opening bell, dominating Takam until the referee stopped the bout—prematurely—in the tenth round.
