‘I would never disrespect another human being on racial, ethnic or religious grounds’: Kubrat Pulev apologises after making comment about Anthony Joshua’s ‘tan’
- Kubrat Pulev is expected to face Anthony Joshua in a title fight on December 12
- But he has been accused of racism after referring to Joshua’s skin colour
- When asked about his verdict on Joshua, Pulev sparked fury with his answer
- The pair were meant to fight in June but it was postponed due to coronavirus
Kubrat Pulev has apologised after making a comment regarding Anthony Joshua’s ‘tan’ earlier this week.
The 39-year-old Bulgarian will battle it out it with Joshua for his WBA, IBF and WBO titles, with the fight set to take place on December 12 after it was initially postponed due to the Covid-19 outbreak.
And ahead of the pair’s upcoming title fight, Pulev was asked about his verdict on Joshua – in which he made a controversial comment about his opponent’s skin colour.
Kubrat Pulev made reference to Anthony Joshua’s skin colour ahead of their title fight
Pulev has since come in for plenty of criticism online after his comments regarding Joshua
‘His strengths? I’d say he has a very powerful punch undeniably,’ said Pulev during a press conference.
‘What are his other strengths? His tan is better than mine.’
Pulev has since come in for criticism and has now released a statement.
‘I would never, under any circumstances, allow myself to show disrespect to another human being on racial, ethnic or religious grounds,’ the 39-year-old said.
World champion Joshua attended a Black Lives Matter protest in Watford back in June
‘If somebody has been offended by my words, I hope they would try to understand exactly what I meant by them and if they cannot understand me, then accept my sincere apology.’
Joshua – who is of Nigerian and Irish ancestry – has been a big advocate of the Black Lives Matter movement in the fight against racism in society.
Joshua even delivered a powerful speech as he showed his support for the movement when he joined a protest march in his home town of Watford. The world champion joined hundreds of others on the peaceful protest.