Anthony Joshua makes impassioned defence of Daniel Dubois after his defeat by Joe Joyce

Anthony Joshua has hit out at those who have criticised Daniel Dubois for his defeat by Joe Joyce – blasting them as ‘out of order’ for labelling him as a ‘quitter’.

Dubois was forced to retire in the 10th round of his British, Commonwealth and European championship battle against Joyce on Saturday.

The pre-fight favourite was forced to take a voluntary knee after his left-eye had taken a repeated beating from the left-hand jab of Joyce.

Anthony Joshua (left) has leapt to the defence of Daniel Dubois for retiring hurt on Saturday

Dubois will be out for four months after fracturing his eye socket against Joe Joyce 

The 23-year-old was punished by some stinging jabs in his shock defeat on Saturday night 

Dubois was counted out on Saturday after going down with a broken left eye socket

The 23-year-old’s actions saw him eventually counted out – to the ire of many former boxers, pundits and fans.

Dubois has now been told he must avoid all physical activity for four months, as he awaits a decision regarding which type of surgery he will need for the fracture of his left eye socket. He also suffered nerve damage and bleeding in the retina.

And speaking about his British rival, Joshua has leapt to his defence by insisting he made the right choice in retiring from that fight for the sake of his health.

‘If Daniel needs someone to speak to, he should call me. It is easy for people to criticise from outside the ring – but some people have been out of order,’ the IBF, IBO, WBA, WBO heavyweight champion told The Sun.

Joshua has blasted those for calling Dubois a ‘quitter’ and insists his ‘time will come’

‘Daniel took a massive risk in taking that fight, as did Joe Joyce. They both knew the dangers and they both put it all on the line.

‘I hear people talking respectfully about tapping out in MMA fights. Then when a boxer stops because his eyeball is about to fall out, they call him a ‘quitter’ – are they serious?

‘Daniel’s time will come. I believe I will fight both him and Joyce. Joyce is underrated. He had a top amateur pedigree and it shows. This is a great time for British heavyweight boxing – it has never been stronger – and those two guys are both a huge part of it.’