Anthony Joshua typically keeps his romantic life under wraps but he got real, opening up about why he’s currently single while also flirting with sports presenter Laura Woods in the same breath, sparking dating rumors.
The heavyweight boxer might just be one of the most eligible bachelors in the country; he’s loved by all including mums, dads, grandparents – and maybe even the family cat and dog too.
The 33-year-old’s dating life was thrust under the spotlight after he got very flirty with TalkSport’s Laura followed by his victory against Jermain Franklin at London’s O2 Arena.
Clearly in a good mood after winning the big fight, Anthony wasn’t interested in talking sport and instead, engaged in flirty banter with Laura as they sat thigh-to-thigh on the sofa.
‘You’re my dream date,’ Anthony told the broadcaster while also showering her with other compliments, including telling her how ‘pretty’ she was.
With Laura the object of his affections, who else has the boxer been linked to over the years?
The boxer’s chemistry with Laura Woods was off the charts
Anthony Joshua’s dating life
Laura Woods
The internet is currently ‘shipping’ Anthony and Laura after her impromptu interview with him on iFL TV backstage after the fight.
Sat (questionably) barefoot in his dressing room, the former Sky Sports presenter gave Anthony a grilling about his love life, while he also returned the questions.
‘What do you think of my career then?’ Laura cheekily asked, to which Anthony replied ever-so smoothly: ‘I think it’s blossomed amazingly… just like you.’
When she asked who his dream date would be, Anthony confessed while staring longingly at the presenter: ‘You.’
Anthony later opened up about his decision to stay single throughout his boxing career, instead hoping to settle down once he retires.
‘With boxing I never wanted to commit as I didn’t want to go training and I’m busy arguing with my missus and my head’s not in the game, so I just decided to keep my head where it needs to be,’ he explained.
Nicole Osborne
Before his fame and success, Anthony was in an on/off relationship with fitness trainer Nicole, who he met in his school days.
In 2016, the sports star revealed he’d become a father for the first time, welcoming a baby boy with Nicole.
The former couple share son JJ – Joseph Bayley Temiloluwa Prince Joshua – and Anthony is known to have a close bond with the seven-year-old. He recently revealed whether he wants JJ to follow in his boxing footsteps, but said he hopes the youngster finds his own path.
Anthony is a proud father to son JJ who he shares with ex Nicole Osborne
Maya Jama
In 2019, Anthony and Love Island presenter Maya sparked dating rumors when she shared a smiley selfie posing with the boxer.
Fans were beside themselves with excitement thinking they were the new power couple on the block, but it turned out they were simply shooting a Lucozade advert together.
The speculation was only fueled by Maya’s recent split from Stormzy that summer, but Anthony shut down the rumors he’d moved on with his friend’s ex-girlfriend.
Anthony and Maya Jama were linked after a cosy selfie but it was nothing more
‘So I took a little picture with one of my friends, a musician, his ex, in the gym and it gets blown out of proportion. Like, “Ohhhh, what’s he doing with her?”, but we were just working on a shoot,’ he told reporters during a roundtable before his Andy Ruiz fight.
He added: ‘But then me and him spoke and I said, “It’s the bloggers job to blog, it’s the social media guy’s job to make good social content, it’s the internet guy’s job to make clickbait”. So people take it how they want.’
Bella Hadid
The picture that sparked romance rumors: Anthony was also linked to model Bella Hadid after they posed together at GQ’s Men of the Year Awards
Anthony was pictured with model Bella at the GQ Men of the Year Awards in 2016 and, of course, it wasn’t long before they were romantically linked with each other. Eagle-eyed social media users also noticed the pair had liked each other’s photos but nothing ever came from the rumors.
