BACKGROUND The fruit of two apple cultivars – ‘Braeburn’, which is susceptible to inoculation with Botrytis cinerea, and the less susceptible cv. ‘Golden Delicious’ – were investigated with respect to their response to inoculation with B. cinerea. Successful infection by B. cinerea leads to an oxidative burst and perturbation of plant redox homeostasis. To investigate the interaction between apple fruit and B. cinerea, antioxidant metabolism in fruit samples from sun‐exposed and shaded sides of different tissue types was measured over time. RESULTS The sun‐exposed tissue of ‘Braeburn’ had higher initial levels of total vitamin C in the peel and phenolic compounds in the flesh than ‘Golden Delicious’, despite its greater susceptibility to gray mold. A substantial antioxidant response was recorded in diseased ‘Braeburn’ fruit 14 days after inoculation, which involved an elevated superoxide dismutase activity and ascorbate peroxidase activity, a progressive oxidation of total vitamin C, and a decrease in peroxidase activity and phenolic content. Disease development was slower on the sun‐exposed sides than on the shaded sides. CONCLUSION The two cultivars appeared to utilize different strategies to defend themselves against B. cinerea. ‘Golden Delicious’ almost entirely escaped infection. Preharvest exposure of apple fruit to high light / temperature stress appears to prepare them to better resist subsequent postharvest attack and disease. © 2019 The Authors. Journal of The Science of Food and Agriculture published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.