Anthony Joshua comes out swinging after knocking out Robert Helenius in round seven, saying ‘people should leave me alone’ as he targets Deontay Wilder ‘to carry this heavyweight division’

Anthony Joshua acted quickly to silence all critics who called his seventh-round knockout of Robert Helenius disappointing.

Joshua was set to face British heavyweight Dillian Whyte until his rival had to be pulled from the show last weekend when ‘adverse analytical findings’ were discovered in his doping test.

The Finnish veteran then stepped in, frustrating the two-time world champion to the point of booing and jeering at London’s 02 Arena.

But after successfully knocking out his opponent and earning his second consecutive victory on his comeback course, Joshua was eager to dismiss criticism of the way he had won.

“People should leave me alone, this is my time in the ring,” he said after the fight. “Let me keep doing what I want to do. Helenius, I told him to come back. I think he can cause people a lot of trouble.

‘I don’t want to say too much. I want to see you (the fans) two more times this year. Thanks to Eddie (Hearn).’

After Joshua’s brutal knockout, there was a moment of concern for Helenius, who remained motionless, but was able to get back to his feet before the two fighters touched gloves.

Joshua’s victory has once again sparked talk of a big fight next time, with Hearn even confirming the goal is to follow up Saturday night’s victory with a clash against power-hitter Deontay Wilder.

“It’s a fickle sport, you have to be realistic about this industry and not get caught up,” Joshua told BBC Radio 5 Live. ‘I did my job tonight.

‘My back. Is there a doctor here? My back is gone. Because I carried the heavyweight division.”