Anthony Joshua out of Kevin Johnson fight with back injury

The Olympic gold medal hero has a stress fracture in his back which required immediate medical attention and subsequent physiotherapy.

On the advice of his medical team and trainer he has been ordered to rest before resuming training to appear on the Newcastle bill on April 4.

Joshua was left disappointed by the news he could not face ‘Kingpin’, but in a video message to fans posted on his YouTube channel, he vowed to come back even stronger in April.

“I trained so hard over Christmas and the press conference with Johnson was so lively that I was really looking forward to putting in a great performance,” said Joshua on the postponement.

“It’s bad news for myself and for the fans that have bought tickets. I hope to be able to put on a fan zone at the weigh-in and the fight itself to meet the fans. I will be competing many times this year but this injury is something that I need to get sorted as soon as possible.”