Joshua lands BRUTAL KO win against Pulev – but Fury says ‘big bum dosser’ is ‘sh*tting himself’ over unification fight (VIDEO)

Anthony Joshua retained his world heavyweight titles with a brutal ninth-round knockout of Bulgarian challenger Kubrat Pulev, but rival Brit Tyson Fury has accused the star of “sh*tting himself” at the prospect of a showdown.

Fighting for the first time since reclaiming his titles against Andy Ruiz Jr in their rematch in Saudi Arabia last December, Joshua had Pulev in serious trouble in round three at Wembley Arena, forcing the mandatory challenger to face a count and then sending the 39-year-old to the canvas with an uppercut.

Joshua has Pulev in trouble in round three. © Reuters

The Bulgarian survived that onslaught and managed to keep himself in the fight through the middle rounds as Joshua slowed the pace, allowing Pulev to edge back into it even though he offered little in the way of a serious threat.

That all changed in round nine when Joshua went in for the kill, hammering home three straight uppercuts to send Pulev down.

When the Bulgarian got back to his feet to continue he was soon back on the canvas as Joshua wiped him out with a big right hand, this time leaving a dazed and confused Pulev with no chance of beating the count.

It was a performance of measured power from IBF, WBA and WBO champion Joshua in front of 1,000 fans in London, and thoughts immediately turned to whether fans would get a long-awaited ‘Battle of Britain’ showdown between Joshua and WBC champion Tyson Fury.

"Whoever has the belts I want to compete with. If that is Tyson Fury, let it be Tyson Fury," said Joshua after his victory over Pulev, whose sole previous defeat in 29 fights had come against Wladimir Klitschko back in 2014.

After Joshua had appeared reluctant to indulge Tyson Fury by mentioning his name, the 'Gypsy King' soon took to social media to claim that his fellow Brit was “sh*tting” himself at the prospect of a showdown and accused the 31-year-old of “beating about the bush.”

It was announced earlier this year that the basic framework was in place for a two-fight deal between Joshua and Fury in 2021, and the pair’s promoters both said they would start working on the details right away.

Matchroom supremo Eddie Hearn, who promotes Joshua, said: “Starting from tomorrow, we make the Tyson Fury fight straight away. It’s the only fight in boxing, it’s the biggest fight in boxing, it’s the biggest fight in British boxing history.

“I know he wants it. He is the best heavyweight in the world. I promise you, he’ll break him down, he’ll knock him out. We will get it done.”

Similarly, Fury’s promoter Bob Arum of Top Rank tweeted that it would be the biggest heavyweight match-up since Muhammad Ali fought Joe Frazier in the ‘Fight of the Century’ in 1971.