Joshua vs Pulev: Anthony Joshua's athleticism surprised Fabio Wardley in the closing sparring sessions for Kubrat Pulev fight

Anthony Joshua has sharpened his reflexes in recent sparring sessions with Fabio Wardley, who admits he was surprised by the world champion's athleticism.

Britain's heavyweight star called in Wardley to assist with the final preparations for Saturday's world title fight against Pulev, live on Sky Sports Box Office.

After trading punches with the WBA, IBF and WBO title-holder for the first time, Wardley has singled out Joshua's agility and foot movement as two key assets.

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"It was a good spar. I was surprised at him, to be fair," Wardley told Sky Sports.

"As stupid as that sounds, with him being a world champ, and him being in the game for so long, I was quite surprised that for someone of his size, of how light he was on his feet. How fluid he was, getting in and out of range.

"I've sparred a lot of big guys and I'm usually the quicker on my feet, and I can usually get in and out. He kind of matched me for that a lot, which I was very impressed by.

"Just his upper body movement as well. Again, for someone who is so big, so muscle-bound as well, I thought he would be a lot more rigid in his movement and stuff. But I guess it's something that him and the team have been working on a lot, to get more of a fluid motion to his game.

"It was a good competitive spar and we got stuck in a few times which was good."

Victory over Pulev could pave the way for Joshua to face WBC champion Tyson Fury in an undisputed world title fight next year.

But Wardley believes Joshua is more single-minded than ever, having suffered his first defeat to Andy Ruiz Jr, and has stringently prepared for a punishing victory over Pulev.

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Asked if Pulev could receive a shock, Wardley said: "I think so. After the Ruiz thing, I think he looked at himself, looked at his own game as a boxer and made some real adjustments.

"They showed in that spar. Some things he was doing, some things they were working on which looked really clean, really sharp. Everything he did was well drilled and well-schooled.

"As much as there is the talk of Fury next year and whatever else, I think he's very focused at the moment, and not taking his eye off the ball again, like people say he may have done.

"This time around he is 100 per cent focused. He is looking to do some damage on Pulev."

Watch Joshua vs Pulev on Saturday, live on Sky Sports Box Office, from 6pm. Book it via your Sky remote or book it online here. Even if you aren't a Sky TV subscriber you can book and watch it here.