Joshua was seen at the invite-only Fame Park zoo in Dubai – with former Italy international Alessandro Del Piero – getting to know some of the animals.

In one activity at the zoo, Joshua was spotted taking on a liger – a hybrid between a lion and a tiger – in a game of tug-of-war, which he lost!

Anthony Joshua was spotted in a game of tug-of-war with a bizarre animal back in December

The British boxing star held up an ‘I LOST’ sign after falling to defeat against a rare hybrid animal known as a liger (a cross between a male lion and a female tiger).

Joshua was joined by Italian football legend Alessandro Del Piero at the invite-only zoo

Joshua then proudly posed with a sign which read ‘I Lost’ before handing over responsibility to Del Piero who, similarly, failed to beat the beast.

Aside from the tug-of-war battle, the British boxer was also seen feeding a baby lion and sitting on a throne with a huge snake lying across him.

Photographers also captured the moment that Joshua petted a baby bear and held a sloth, as he posed with a big grin throughout.

It was confirmed on Saturday that Anthony Joshua vs Francis Ngannou is a done deal, with the 10-round bout set to take place in Saudi Arabia later this year.

Mail Sport can reveal that the pair will face off on March 8, a date originally earmarked for Joshua’s proposed clash with Wilder.

AJ stated his interest in fighting Ngannou after the former UFC star broke into the WBC’s top 10 heavyweight rankings after his first professional boxing match.

Joshua was all smiles as he sat and posed with a baby lion during his visit to the zoo

Joshua and Dek Piero pose with a giant python during the day out in Dubai

No one gave Ngannou anything other than a puncher’s chance on his boxing debut against Tyson Fury last October.

However, Ngannou proved his worth against the Gypsy King – knocking the WBC champion to the canvas in the third round before ultimately losing on a split decision.

Many punters felt Ngannou did enough across the 10 round contest to win the fight and said that the Cameroonian had been ‘robbed’ to protect Fury’s fight with Oleksandr Usyk.

However, the majority of boxing experts agreed that Fury was the rightful winner on the night – just edging past the Cameroonian after a disappointing performance from the Gypsy King.

There’s nothing for AJ to feel grizzly about as he warmed up for what could be a spectacular year in the ring with a touching bear encounter.