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Joshua, 31, was scheduled to defend his belts
against IBF mandatory challenger Pulev on June 20 but the fight
was postponed due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
The rescheduled bout will be the Briton's first on home soil in
over two years but he may have to compete behind closed doors.
"The O2 is the original lion's den, I have a lot of history with
the arena, but without the fans something huge is missing,"
Joshua said.
Plans for the return fans at stadiums for elite sporting events
from October were put on hold by the government amid a rise in
the novel coronavirus cases in the United Kingdom.
"I am really hoping that, safety permitting, we might be able to
bring some boxing fans in, but we will have to see," Joshua
added.
"I respect every opponent and I respect Pulev. I wish him well
during his preparation."
Joshua regained his titles from Andy Ruiz Jr with a unanimous
points victory in Saudi Arabia last December.
A shoulder injury forced Pulev out of a scheduled fight against
Joshua at Cardiff's Principality Stadium in October 2017 but he
remains optimistic about pulling off a stunning victory.
"For a small country of Bulgaria to stand up for the heavyweight
titles is a great accomplishment," said Pulev.
"This fight is for my late father and all Bulgarians around the
world! I'm coming to London to seize the heavyweight
championship of the world."
(Reporting by Hardik Vyas in Bengaluru, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
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