Anthony Joshua Proves He Has the Heart to Match the Talent

Anthony Joshua overcame his first real test as a professional by knocking out long-time rival Dillian Whyte to win the British heavyweight title.

After just 14 professional bouts, Joshua's stirring victory came in front of a sell-out crowd at the 20,000-capacity O2 Arena. But, that is what you can achieve having won Olympic gold and all wins coming by knockout within the first three rounds.

Like any other Olympic hopeful, "AJ" been eased into the professional boxing scene. But, Saturday night saw him make his first real step up in competition as he faced Whyte—an unbeaten foe who actually defeated Joshua on his amateur boxing debut.

With 16 wins and 13 of them via knockout, Whyte was expected to be a tougher challenge for Joshua with a nice backstory to boot. But, the general consensus was that AJ would make light work of "The Bodysnatcher" and add the British heavyweight title to his Commonwealth and WBC International heavyweight belts.

However, it wasn't totally plain sailing for Joshua. For the first time in his career, Joshua was forced into a lengthy, grueling fight with his chin and heart tested in equal measure.

The 27-year-old Whyte withstood plenty of punishment from his opponent and managed to stay in the fight, landing big blows of his own to keep Joshua on his toes.

The first round saw Whyte prove his toughness as Joshua took the center of the ring and landed plenty of shots against the man who he had bickered with for a number of years. But, an AJ punch after the bell saw Whyte retaliate with more blows as both boxers' entourages stormed the ring to restore order.

This incident may have got the better of Joshua as he appeared to be talking to his opponent throughout the early exchanges of the second round before Whyte wobbled AJ with a gargantuan left hook. Suddenly, it appeared Joshua was in trouble in his biggest fight to date as Whyte homed in on his target with more looping shots.

Joshua was in cruise control and was looking likely to add another KO victim inside the first few rounds up until Whyte's left hand. But, still reeling from the blow he took in the previous round, Joshua was also second best in a lot of the exchanges between in the third.

But, Joshua soon regained his footing and managed to keep a comfortable distance away from Whyte with a consistent jab with the odd right straight thrown into the mix as he attempted to clear the cobwebs.

Soon Joshua was back to his brutal best as he landed a string of shots on Whyte. But, the Brixton brawler looked like he could take everything being thrown his way. Well, that was the case until AJ landed a big right hand on the side of Whyte's dome which turned his legs into jelly.

Joshua smelled blood and fired a flurry of combinations in the direction of the reeling Whyte, whose incredible heart got the better of him as he continued to throw punches while leaning on the ropes in a last ditch to stay in the fight. But, Joshua finished the contest with a barrage of punches, punctuated by an unstoppable right uppercut which sent Whyte crashing through the ropes.

As medics rushed into the ring to give the crushed Whyte oxygen, talk immediately turned to Joshua's next opponent. Former world title challenger Dereck Chisora, who knocked out Croatian journeyman Jakov Gospic on the same card, appears to be the frontrunner for Joshua as his promoter Eddie Hearn looks to gradually build his prize asset by padding out his record with big, beatable names.

David Haye has also been bandied about as an opponent. But, even with "The Hayemaker"'s long layoff, this appears to be a dangerous opponent as Joshua finds his footing in professional heavyweight boxing.

Tyson Fury is the fight everyone in the United Kingdom would like to see. But, with Fury accepting Wladimir Klitschko's rematch for 2016, this appears a long way off—these sentiments echoed by Joshua himself:

"A world title fight is still far away. Becoming an elite athlete in such a tough sport, it doesn't happen overnight but I've got the desire, ambition and the team around me to do it but I don't want to rush it because when I get there, I want to stay there."

Fury vacated his IBF title by taking the Klitschko fight, and with the IBF ranking Joshua at eighth in the world, it would appear he is still a long way off fighting for a world title any time soon. But, there is no doubting that this is one of the most exciting eras in British heavyweight boxing history after such a long period of stagnation.

Audley Harrison was the great British heavyweight hope who won gold at the 2000 Sydney Olympics and ultimately fell at the professional hurdle. Joshua has shown no signs of that happening and really showed the extent of his heart and chin on Saturday night. Winning a gritty, back-and-forth fight through adversity is inarguably more impressive than knocking out cans within three rounds.

Joshua isn't the finished article by any means. But, he is unquestionably the most exciting boxing talent to come from the expectant British Isles in a number of years. Saturday would have done nothing but heighten those hopes of another world champion to hail from the United Kingdom.