Anthony Joshua vs Wladimir Klitschko: Champion dismisses USB prediction mind games after learning to stay calm

Anthony Joshua insists he has been unaffected by Wladimir Klitschko's attempted mind games because they are so similar to others he has already encountered.

The Ukrainian revealed he last week recorded his prediction for Saturday's IBF and WBA world heavyweight title fight at Wembley onto a memory stick, having on Wednesday contributed to Joshua waiting to start his public workout.

Klitschko has also been consistently respectful to the IBF champion to the point of appearing to attempt to soften his edge, but it was the fight prediction that particularly stood out and with which Joshua felt so similar.

Before Joshua's defeat of Kevin Johnson - who once lost to Klitschko's older brother Vitali - in May 2015, the American insisted he had already written a book in which he revealed how to defeat the Briton.

Joshua won convincingly and such a book is yet to emerge, so when asked about Klitschko's latest ploy, the 27-year-old said: "At the time when I fought Kevin Johnson, at the press conference before he was saying he's written a book.

"And you can buy it, and he's going to tell the world how he's going to beat me: said he had the antidote.

"This was the first time I experienced anything like that, so I was thinking 'Damn, has he actually written a book?' That was interesting.

"When (Klitschko) did say it this time, I thought to myself 'Ah, luckily I've heard this before'. It's strategy, isn't it? I'm just focusing on the fight, I'm not downloading no USB and bringing that to press conferences. I didn't take it the way he wanted to express it."

Joshua was then asked if he believed video of Klitschko's prediction even existed and whether it would eventually be widely seen, and he said: "Yeah. In this sport you can't say something and get away with it, so it has to exist.

"No, probably (it won't see the light of day). I don't think he'll reveal who bid for it if he does give it away.

"It was an attempt (at a mind game).

"He's trying to make me angry, because when I'm angry I don't fight well. But he's different at it. I don't dislike him, I just want to beat him, and there's a big difference."

The 41-year-old Klitschko, who had also attempted to help Joshua answer one of the questions he was asked at their press conference in London, continued to deny he was trying to get into the champion's head before their Wembley showdown.

For Joshua's part, he joked that he would join the auction for the memory stick by bidding £1billion to buy it, having heard his challenger say: "I recorded a video last week, and the outcome of the fight. My prediction.

"This (memory stick) is going to be in my robe, which I'm going to wear this Saturday night, sealed.

"The only person who's going to be able to watch it is the person who's going to buy this robe, and all the money will go to the Klitschko Foundation.

"I've been attached to these belts for a very long time. I had those belts in my past fight. I'm actually having them in my next fight - an amazing matter of fact - the only difference was after my last fight (against Tyson Fury) the belts went to the opposite corner. My obsession is so those belts can land in this corner."

PA