Anthony Joshua has opened up about whether he would fight boxing legend Mike Tyson.
'Iron Mike' is widely mooted to come out of retirement to face old rival Evander Holyfield in an exhibition bout later this year.
Meanwhile, Joshua's priority target Tyson Fury also claims he has agreed to a bout with the former heavyweight champion.
AJ, however, insists he would not fight Tyson out of respect and claimed there would be little to gain by facing such an icon of the sport in the ring.
When asked if he would face Tyson, Joshua told The Sun : “With all due respect I wouldn’t.
“Even if I fought Iron Mike and beat him, I think I’d be the only one cheering. People would boo. He is a legend. He is the greatest boxer of the modern era.
“There are only two recognised champions the world knows of, Ali and Mike Tyson - the most recognised faces in the world when it comes to boxing.”
Though some have warned against Tyson returning to the ring, Joshua used a comparison to football legend David Beckham to support the idea.
He added: “I see it like this — how old is David Beckham, 44, 45?
“If you see him in ten years kicking a ball, doing 100 kick ups, a round-the-world and hitting the crossbar and then an overhead volley into the top corner, people would love it.
“But because Mike Tyson is the embodiment of like, the killing machine, he hits the pads for 15 seconds and the whole world goes crazy, it is normal.
“It is what Tyson knows. But for him to fight... would you be shocked if Beckham came back? You would. But for boxers it’s all they know.”
Meanwhile, Joshua insisted on Saturday that Tyson Fury remains his No.1 target and he is aiming to become the undisputed heavyweight champion.
