Anthony Joshua - Francis Ngannou summary online, round by round, stats and highlights
Anthony Joshua is back and better than ever
Anthony Joshua knocks out Francis Ngannou in the second round
What a fight card! The Riyadh Season for 2023-24 will go down in history as one of the best ever, kicking off with the joint Wilder - Joshua card, and wrapping up with Joshua - Ngannou. There were five title bouts this evening and it culminated with two outstanding heavyweight fights.
After seeing a wold class performance by Mark Chamberlain and a war of attrition between Nick Ball and Rey Vargas, it seemed as if it couldn't get any better. But Joseph Parker and Zhilei Zhang turned it up to 11.
Parker has completely reinvented himself, rebounding from serious losses to Anthony Joshua and Dillian Whyte that saw his world title stripped off of him, he made a huge decision to relocate halfway around the world to London and retrain, getting busy and staying active. He took down Deontay Wilder with a brilliant gameplan and bit off a huge bite by facing Zhilei Zhang tonight.
Zhang for his part has been a beast, not the most mobile fighter ever, known as a man with fast hands and slow feet, a plodding ox who kicks like a mule. After knocking down Parker with a huge left in the third and a check hook right in the eighth, Zhang seemed to be certain of his victory. But Parker stayed mobile, outboxing Zhang comprehensively and taking the points win and the Interim WBO title with it.
The main event was a fight that, on paper at least, should have never happened. Yes, Francis Ngannou is a legendary MMA fighter. Yes, he knows his way around a ring. But just because you can cook, that doesn't mean you can farm.
Boxing is a game of precision, a contest that is highly restrictive in what is permissible. That is what makes it beautiful. One combat sport doesn't necessarily translate to the other.
It was Ngannou's shockingly tidy performance against Tyson Fury, who clearly underestimated his opponent, that set this fight up. And to be fair to Joshua, he took Ngannou seriously. He trained for a full fight against a professional heavyweight boxer. And to be fair to Ngannou, he has good skill, great speed, and always a punchers chance.
But in the end, it went as it was always going to go. In the first round, Joshua found that straight right hand that made him two-time world champion, knocking Ngannou down. In the second round, he found it again, leaving Ngannou dazed before a third heavy overhand right turned out the lights for Francis Ngannou. Asleep before he hit the floor, this was the old Anthony Joshua that we have been waiting so long to see again.
But by bringing back the old AJ, Joshua had to go back to basics and become a new AJ. After Usyk took him apart twice, many thought that Joshua was done. He had ridden his luck and that right hand so far and this was the end of the road. But his reinvention of himself is not, as was Parker's, in finding something new, but rather in finding something old, something that he had before and simply forgot where he had put it.
Tonight we saw a glimpse of that new, old AJ, and he looks better than he ever has. Can he beat Usyk in a trilogy bout? Who knows? Can he beat Tyson Fury, should the Gypsy King pry those titles away from the White Rabbit? Again, that is still to be seen. But at least Anthony Joshua is back as a contender if nothing else. And that is a sight for sore eyes.
GOODBYE!!!
That is going to do it for our live coverage of Anthony Josuah vs Francis Ngannou. We hope that you enjoyed it as much as we did!
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Wow! That was a huge blow! This was an all new Anthony Joshua that was, paradoxically, the old Anthony Joshua. A huge right hand that put his opponent asleep quickly.
Ngannou is a tough customer, and while, yes, he is not a boxer per se, he is a real warrior. To have done what he has done in only two fights is absolutely insane. But the real story is that AJ is now back. Perhaps better than he has ever been.
Anthony Joshua wins by KO
Ngannou is fast and he is keeping AJ at a distance. Not yet fully recovered, he is still a dangerous man. Joshua is staying outside but manages to get through the guard of Ngannou to land another nice right hand.
Joshua paws out another jab and then lands that heavy right hand again! Ngannou goes down again! He gets up and beats the count but he is out of it! Joshua comes in again with another heavy right hand that catches Ngannou flush and Ngannou is asleep before he hits the floor! The ref immediately waves it off! What a performance by Joshua!
Both men come out working orthodox and AJ is wary of Ngannou's quick hands, lightning quick for his size. Joshua gets in and out but Ngannou stay s on top of him, not letting him get into any kind of rhythm.
A huge straight right hand from Anthony Joshua puts Ngannou down! That was classic AJ!
Ngannou is a little buzzed here and AJ might be tempted to go for broke, but Ngannou is so quick and ha a tough chin.
Anthony Joshua vs Francis Ngannou
Now it is time for the main event as Anthony Joshua takes on Francis Ngannou in only the second proffesional bout for Ngannou, but what a debut he made, knocking Tyson Fury down. AJ is rebuilding himself after losing his titles to Usyk two years ago and this is a solid test for the former unified champ.
The celebration
Joseph Parker has completely re invented himself and he looks better now than when he was WBO champion.
Even though that was a majority decision with one judge seeing it as a draw, I think that was a fair view of the fight. Some of those early rounds were close, before Zhang gassed out, and I could see how one or two could have been given to him. I liked Parker's work rate, his punches landed, and felt that Zhang was too static, but that is the thing with boxing. It is so subjective.
AND THE NEW: Joseph Parker wins by MD
The judges at ringside see it as:
113-113
114-112
115-111
to the winner by majority decision and the new Interim WBO heavyweight champion, Joseph Parker.
It seems insane but Zhang knocked Parker down twice and then lost nearly every other round. Parker outboxed Zhang by a country mile and in the end, I have that fight 115-111 to Parker. It is mind boggling.
Let's see what the judges at ringside say about it.
The final round and Zhang needs to get busy here. Parker is up on my card, despite the two knockdowns, just because he has won nearly every other round apart from those two.
Parker is landing shots in combos, rather than single blows. Parker is boxing circles around Zhang here and with only 20 seconds left, he needs to get busy.
Zhang is out of gas entirely and as the bell goes I think that Joseph Parker won that fight.
Parker is now moving the other way and having some success with it. Zhang's face is showing signs of being in a fight here, with his eye starting to show redness. Parker lands a great three punch combo to the body and Zhang wraps him up immediately. Zhang is so tired here, but Parker simply can't chop him down.
Parker is doubling up his jab, following it up with the right hand, but he is going too much to the head. Parker is walking Zhang around to the left, Parker's right, and has done all night. Moving around the other way could get Zhang off balance and open that body up to a left hook. He needs to stay on the move though.
Parker lands a one two, then another and Zhang back pedals out of range.
Parker really must make Zhang move more. Zhang has no stamina at all and he is clearly tired, but his punches are like cannon shots. Parker standing there and trying to just outpunch him is a bad plan.
Parker lands a good double jab and as Zhang holds on, gets in a good uppercut and a shot to the head. Zhang has done nothing this round and Parker has let him stand there without spinning him at all.
Parker lands a huge right hand to start the round and that really woke Zhang up! Big Bang responds with a flurry of shots that ended Parker's attack. But oh! What a shot! And the reaction from Zhang is what he needs to do as well. He absolutely has to let his hands go.
Zhang lands a choppy lead right hook and Parker goes down again! That was such a nothing shot, but it landed cleanly and dear me, what power Zhang possesses!
Parker comes back and tries to salvage the round, and lands a huge right hand of his own. These two knockdowns are the difference here. Parker is outboxing Zhang but those two 10-8 rounds are what is keeping Zhang out in front here.
Zhang is throwing a few more punches than earlier but he is breathing heavily now. He is clearly struggling with energy levels now. Parker is looking better, recovered from that knockdown earlier. It took a few rounds but he has all the cobwebs shaken out now.
Parker lands a nice one two down the middle that splits the guard of Zhang. Zhang comes back with a solid jab of his own.
Parker is showing good head movement but his feet are not yet doig the job that they need to do. Zhang is already looking tired, it is so difficult for such a big man to move for such a long time.
Parker goes in with a heavy one two to the body and Zhang lets him get away with it. Big Bang seems to be relying on that one big shot to win the fight for him.
Parker is now moving a bit more, not as mobile as he was against Wilder but better than the opening rounds. He needs to keep Zhang turning, pirouetting in order to tire the big man.
Parker is working well to the body, throwing heavy right hands to Zhang's midriff.
Parker is feinting a little better and Zhang is starting to look a little plodding in there.
Zhang has a lot of life in him now and Parker's nose is cut right on the bridge. Blood is flowing and he is still not completely right. The blood is clearly bothering Parker as he continually wipes his face.
Parker tries to fight fire with fire, letting his hands go and throwing shots at Zhang. A few land but they are not enough to hurt the big man. Parker needs to get his feet into the fight here, move around more, stay mobile. Zhang's right flank is available if Parker can just feight and move onto it.
Parker throws a right hand and Zhang is wobbled! That was a good shot from Parker! They are now both trading thunderous blows here!
Parker gets warned for a low blow on Zhang, and he knew it. He apologized to Zhang immediately.
Both men are a little more free flowing with the jabs now, but still not entirely ready to let their hands fly. Zhang lands a nice short left, right on the nose of Parker.
The two men grapple and Big Bang lands a huge left hand flush on the nose and Parker is straight down! He gets back up but I think that Parker's nose is broken. He is in all kinds of trouble here!
Zhang goes straight in again for the KO and lands a great left again. Parker survives the round but my oh my. is he in trouble.
Zhang comes out and throws the left hand, but Parker is able to back pedal off of it for no damage. Parker feints and goes in low with that huge overhand right that was so successful against Wilder, landing on Zhang's chest, not doing any harm.
Zhang goes in and lands a huge left on Parker's chest, a thudding shot. Parker lands a nice jab and the men come together. Zhang is huge! Almost immovable!
Both men come out pawing out those huge hams, looking for an in road. Parker works orthodox while Zhang is a southpaw.
Zhang comes forward with the one two, a lazy kind of shot designed to draw Parker out. Parker is quicke and lands a nice right hand but Zhang lands a heavy left to the body in response.
Zhang sticks a nice jab on Parker and the crowd are getting restless, hoping for a war, but these big men are too experienced to fall for that trap. One wrong move could end the evening for either one.
Forget about Anthony Joshua, says Zhilei Zhang. My fight with Joseph Parker is the one you want to tune in for. And we 100% agree with him. Read it all here.
Zhilei Zhang vs Joseph Parker [WBO interim heavyweight title]
Here we go! The best fight on the card tonight, perhaps even the main event. Zhilei "Big Bang" Zhang takes on Joseph Parker for the WBO interim heavyweight title.
Zhang completely dismantled Joe Joyce, a fighter who had shown no weaknesses at all, twice. Joseph Parker is the former WBO heavyweight champion and is coming off a fight that saw him destroy Deontay Wilder from bell to bell. This is going to be a banger!
Inching closer
We are nearly at the fight that could perhaps even be the main event tonight.
That will be a contentious fight in many quarters and on both sides, but for me, both of those knockdowns were righteous. Vargas outboxed Ball early on, but the incredible aggression of Ball turned the tide.
Vargas only has himself to blame with the play acting and fake falling to the ground, trying to convince the ref to deduct a point from Ball. It was shameful behavior on his part and when you do that, lowering your head and flopping to the floor, sooner or later you are going to get caught.
Split Draw
The judges see it:
114-112 for Vargas
116-110 for Ball
113-113
for a split draw. That is a travesty. Ball won that fight and Rey Vargas got extremely lucky.
Wow! I've not seen a fight like that in a while. Vargas won the first five rounds easily and I think that he still lost the fight. The two knockdowns are the difference for me. I would be surprised if Ball is not the winner here. I have it 114-112. Let's see what the judges at ringside say about it.
As we head into the final round, I have Ball up on my card. Vargas needs to win this round to have any chance at all.
Vargas is letting his hands go more freely now, trying to score the points, but Ball is like a bulldozer, charging forward and keeping the Mexican on the back foot.
Vargas eats a huge right hand here and he is in trouble here. Ball is not slowing down at all and Vargas needs to somehow find something here. He lands a couple of nice jabs but eats a left hand in the process.
You sense a confidence in Ball here and he is straight onto the front foot as Vargas is back pedalling for his life. Ball is incredibly aggressive here. But he needs to be wary of Vargas' counter, he could get caught out.
Halfway through the round, and Vargas is moving forward, perhaps trying to adress the difference in aggression. Ball lands a huge right hand! Vargas goes down! That was a knockdown, no question! He gets up and is frustrated, again complaining that it should not be a knockdown, but there was no doubt there.
As insane as it sounds, that 10-8 round makes these guys dead even on my card.
Ball comes out with a huge left hook which jelly legs Vargas for a second. Vargas comes back with a huge right hook to the body that sends Ball stumbling backward. The force in that shot was incredible!
Ball lands a beautiful left hook that wobbles Vargas right at the end of the round.
Vargas has somehow let Ball back into this fight. He has lost the last two or three rounds, the last one a 10-8 round and suddenly, things are not so clear cut anymore. He needs to fight Ball like he wold any other man.
Ball stays on the front foot and Vargas is back to counter punching nicely. They come in and both land great shots. Vargas lands a solid right hand but has his own head snapped back by a great left hook from Ball.
A great left by Ball right on the bell has Vargas a little wobbled.
Vargas is sticking to his jab and Ball needs to find another way in, building on the damage that he did in the last round. Ball catches Vargas with a great left hand. Again Vargas holds, again Vargas falls to the floor. He is doing this as a tactic. More furbizia from Vargas.
Mall gets in close and lands a huge left hand and Vargas is knocked down legitimately this time as the bell goes. He gets the standing eight count, much to his frustration. But Vargas was trying to pretend that he was thrown to the floor and instead got caught by a great left.
Both men charge in and Ball lands a huge shot. Vargas acts hurt and complains to the ref of a head clash. I'm not sure that they did clash, but Vargas is an old pro at this kind of what the Italians call "Furbizzia", which means cunning or wiliness. Basically using whatever you can to turn the fight in your favor.
Ball lands a huge right hand! Vargas is wobbled! He is jelly legged all over the ring! Ball comes forward and lands another huge right hand! He is in all kinds of trouble! After the bell, Vargas jumps right in Ball's face, talking smack. Oh, dear! Vargas is in a terrible way here!
The fight is now staying inside for longer periods, with Ball advancing and Vargas counter punching. Vargas hits Ball very low again, perhaps the third of fouth time in the bout. The two fighters are now talking trash to each other, with Vargas now calling Ball on, saying come on, come inside! I dare you!
As the bell rings, Ball lands a great left hand to Vargas' chin. He had to just about jump in order to do it, but it landed clean.
Vargas comes out probing, trying to keep Ball at distance, but Ball is still bullrushing his way in. As the fight gets inside, the ref breaks them, despite them not actually being wrapped up. Both fighters were swinging freely. Maybe he just wants the fight to stay outside?
Ball is still pushing in, trying to get the distance down to nothing but Vargas is doing a great job of making him pay each time he comes forward.
Ball comes out in the fourth and bull rushes Vargas, landing a couple of shots, but Vargas is able to backpedal his way out of any kind of danger.
They come together and now Vargas throws Ball through the ropes, perhaps frustrated and giving a bit of Ball's own medicine back to him.
Ball jumps in and lands a great combo to Vargas' head and has the champ back onto the ropes when suddenly the ref jumps in and separates them. I'm not sure why. Very odd indeed.
Nick Ball gets wrapped up by Vargas again and perhaps in frustration, throws him to the floor. The referee calls Ball over and gives him a warning.
Vargas comes back with another lovely double hook to the body. Ball gets in a nice shot of his own. Ball heads in and again Vargas wraps him up and again Vargas falls to the canvas. A clear slip, but Vargas' corner is livid, screaming that Ball should be penalized for it.
The two men come together and Ball spins Vargas and lands a hook to the body as Vargas goes to a knee, but the referee says that it was a slip and not a knockdown.
Vargas is doing well with that double hook, and you can sense frustration from Ball as he charges in to throw that jab to the face. He is landing some of them but not enough to hurt Vargas.
The height difference is the first thing that catches your eye. Rey Vargas is 5'8" tall and he towers over Nick Ball who stands at a diminuitive 5'2" tall. One of the tallest featherweights versus one of the shortest.
They both work from the orthodox stance and Ball is wary of Vargas' reach.
Ball holds the center of the ring and is trying to work his way in under the jab of Vargas. The champion lands a great double hook to Ball's body. Another great uppercut-back hand combo from Vargas and he has had a tidy first round here.
Rey Vargas vs Nick Ball [WBC featherweight title]
We now have another title fight as Mexico's Rey Vargas defends his WBC World Featherweight title from Britain's Nick Ball.
AND THE NEW: Israil Madrimov wins vacant WBA Super Welterweight title
What a performance by Madrimov! He stayed on the front foot from beginning to end. Kurbanov looked like he was out of his depth all the way through, but Madrimov looked every bit like the WBA Super Welterweight champion that he now is.
Madrimov wins by TKO
Kurbanov is a little more free flowing with his shots now, but he is keeping his hands very low. Madrimov spots it and lands a huge right hand! He jumps on the advantantage and gets Kurbanov onto the ropes! Madrimov lands another right hand that thuds off Kurbanov's head! Kurbanov is hurt! He falls onto the ropes and Madrimov presses the issue, letting his hands go! Referee Steve Gray steps in and puts a stop to it!
Madrimov stays on the attack and is getting in under the shot coming back from Kurbanov. Both men are throwing single shots rather than combinations and that could be something that could sway the fight if Madrimov were to let his hands fly.
The crowd cheers the arrival of José Mourinho to ringside for the fight and both fighters pick up the pace, perhaps hearing the cheers but not realizing what it was all about. Kurbanov's right eye is starting to swell a little here.
Kurbanov is a little more active here, but he looks stiff with it. More used to working as a counter puncher, it is not in his nature to go on the attack. Madrimov is finding himself less able to simply do whatever he wants with Kurbanov here. It is not all success for Kurbanov but it is good to see him try something new.
Madrimov comes out with an outstanding double hook, masked by a jab, catching Kurbanov clean. Madrimov is on the front foot, pushing forward, walking onto his man. Kurbanov seems slow, perhaps trying to get going here and Madrimov is outworking him easily. Kurbanov is standing up straight and Madrimov is having no trouble finding him with that jab.
Both men come out working orthodox and Kurbanov is on the back foot, taking the outside of the ring as Madrimov walks him down. They both throw probing jabs, trying to test out the waters and find a way in.
Madrimov comes in a little too close and Kurbanov gives him a stiff right for his trouble.
Israil Madrimov vs. Magomed Kurbanov [vacant WBA Super Welterweight title]
This title-fight packed card continues now as Uzbekhistan's Israil Madrimov (9-0) takes on Russia's Magomed Kurbanov (25-0) for the vacant WBA Super Welterweight title.
Joseph Parker is in the building
Lupesoliai La'auliolemalietoa Joseph Parker is getting ready.
AND THE NEW: Mark Chamberlain becomes WBA Inter Continental Lightweight champion
With this win, Mark Chamberlain, the pride of Portsmouth, England becomes the new WBA Inter Continental Lightweight champion.
Mark Chamberlain wins by TKO
Gwynne sticks with the plan of letting his hands fly. Chamberlain is not troubled yet, but with the number of punches coming his way, he is not able to set his feet and come back with his own shots.
Chamberlain lands a lovely left uppercut. Another one two comes down the middle and Gwynne is in trouble a bit here. Howard Foster is having a good look.
Gwynne throws back enough to keep the referee out of it, but Chamberlain manages to get him on the ropes and finally Howard Foster has seen enough and steps in to put an end to this.
Gwynne's corner is working furiously on the eye but referee Howard Foster brings him over to the doctor and they have a look. For now, they decide to allow the fight to continue.
Gwynne comes out throwing more punches than he did in the first two rounds, trying to make up ground on Chamberlain, but he is working blind. Howard Foster calls time and has another look at that eye. He decides to go ahead, for now.
Chamberlain is staying on the attack and that left hand through the middle is finding it's mark without fail. Gwynne just can't see it coming!
Gwynne is throwing enough to keep Chamberlain from unloading.
Referee Howard Foster calls time to have a look at Gwynne's eye, but quickly decides to let it go ahead.
Chamberlain is staying on the front foot and Gwynne is taking the tack of trying to tie him up and slow the assault. Chamberlain switches to southpaw and is having great success with that left hand straight down the pipe. Gwynne's eye is nearly closed now. I wouldn't be surprised if this gets waved off by either his corner or the ref, or possibly the doctor at ringside.
Both fighters come out working from the orthodox stance, as they probe each other, each trying to take the center of the ring. Gwynne taking mor of the punishment as he tries to walk Chamberlain down. Chamberlain lands a great uppercut and Gwynne is cut over the right eye, and blood starts to flow.
That blood is bothering Gwynne now and his eye is swelling greatly. If his corner can't get that under control, that could be a game changer.
Gavin Gwynne vs Mark Chamberlain [vacant WBA Inter Continental Lightweight title]
Now we move on to the next fight on the card in an all-British title fight as Wales' Gavin Gwynne (17-2-1) takes on England's Mark Chamberlain (14-0) for the vacant WBA Inter Continental Lightweight title.
Keven Lerena had him on skates
Just how Huni survived that tenth round is anybody's guess.
AND THE NEW: Justis Huni wins by UD
The judges at ringside saw it:
96-94
96-94
98-92
all in favor of Justis Huni who becomes the new WBO Global Heavyweight champion
Lerena needed to stay on top of Huni there and he could have had the knockout, but as it stands, he will likely have lost this fight on points. Such a shame. I scored it four rounds to Lerena, six to Huni. Let's see what the judges say.
For the tenth and last round, Lerena needs a stoppage to win this. He is down on the cards, surely. The first half was his, but the last five or six rounds have been all Huni.
Lerena lands a huge left and Huni is wobbled! He stumbles back onto the ropes! Lerena has to jump on the front foot here but for some reason he is not doing it! Huni is all but out! Lerena doesn't have anything left but Huni is standing by willpower alone! The bell comes and that was a wasted opportunity for Lerena!
Huni stays on the front foot and is chopping Lerena down, shot by shot. Lerena's nose is looking perhaps broken and he has the air of a man who just wants to see the end of this.
Huni lands a huge left uppercut, but Lerena recovers from it. That is the problem! Huni needs to follow those up with combinations, as long as he lands single shots he is letting Lerena back into this fight.
Lerena now lands his own nice left, giving a smile to the crowd before jumping back onto the attack. He looked as if he heard something at ringside that gave him a chuckle!
Each of these fighters should take a page from the other. Lerena needs to move more and Huni needs to work in combinations.
Right now, Lerena looks like he is feeling the pace, tiring under the strain. Huni is still throwing single shots, but he is landing them almost at will.
Lerena is now leaning on the ropes, a bad strategy for the smaller man. Huni is upping the gears slightly here.
Lerena comes out banging and lands a nice left hand to get things going but he is just too stationary. Huni recovers and comes back with his own left hook and right down the pipe.
Huni lands good shots, but they are all one by one. He needs to get some combinations together to make headway here.
Lerena lands a glancing left off the top of Huni's head and Huni stumbles from it. Lerena jumps on the front foot and puts together a few combinations as the round ends.
The positions are now reversed with Huni taking the middle of the ring and Lerena on the ropes. Huni still moving the better of the two and while Lerena is game, he is there to be hit.
A straight right draws blood from Lerena's nose and Huni is having a good spell. An uppercut followed with an overhand right land nicely.
Huni goes back to the well with that straight right getting straight through the guard. That was Huni's best round yet.
Huni is still moving well, but perhaps getting a bit tied up with his footwork. Lerena is staying small and compact, still walking Huni down. Huni is tapping away and getting the points here but not doing much damage to Lerena.
Lerena lands a big left hand just on the bell.
As the bigger man, Huni should be the slower of the two, with the former cruiserweight Lerena expected to use his feet. But precisely the opposite is happening. Huni is moving well, very nice footwork, keeping Lerena off balance, unable to unload with that left hand like he did in the opening rounds.
Lerena now lands a nice left hand, just to prove me wrong ;-)
As the round comes to a close Lerena is still walking Huni down, but unable to let his hands fly.
Huni is switched on a bit more here, landing the jab and hook, turning Lerena for the first time in the fight, not allowing Lerena to simply walk him down.
Lerena has barely throw a shot back in this round, Huni is picking him off here. Mostly jabs and little taps, but just enough big right hands to keep Lerena wary.
Lerena starts the round with a huge left hand! He lands straight through the middle there and Lerena follows it up with three more, but Huni recovers well. The Aussie needs to move his head a lot more here.
Lerena landss another big left and Huni is in trouble! His legs are nearly gone! Lerena goes to work with hooks, lefts, uppercuts, and Huni looks ready to fall! Somehow, Huni manages to hold on and slow the onslaught, getting his breath back and Lerena might be punched out by this high work rate.
Huni now lands a great right hand straight down the middle, this is still a fight.
Lerena comes out working southpaw with Huni in the orthodox stance. Both jab and try to be the early aggressor, Lerena taking the center of the ring. Lerena is by far the more experienced fighter, but Huni is the naturally bigger man, and you can't underestimate the power difference that the size entails.
Lerena lands a wonderful combo, touching the body and then landing a heavy one two to the head, and then going back to the body. Heavy shots here early on!
Huni paws with the jab, keeping Lerena at distance as the bell sounds.
Justis Huni vs Kevin Lerena [vacant WBO Global heavyweight title]
Australian Justis Huni (8-0) now takes on South African Kevin Lerena (30-2) for the vacant WBO Global heavyweight title in what should be a banger!
Fury is looking for an explosive fight
The Gypsy King says, "You'd like to think that AJ should beat him. He should do. But if he gets drawn into a punch up, Ngannou could land one and put him on his backside."
Main card
We are now into the main fight card, and what a show it is! In just a few minutes we will see Justis Huni take on Kevin Lerena at heavyweight for the vacant WBO Global heavyweight title. Lerena is the former IBO World cruiserweight champion, now stepping up and taking on the big boys.
What a shot!
Good lad! Louis Greene might be my favorite boxer now! "I had to take time off from work to do this. I come from nothing. Everybody talks about my four losses, but they all ignore my 16 wins."
Tyson Fury in the house
His younger brother Roman is on the preliminary card and will be fighting shortly.
Preliminary card results
The prelims are underway and we are getting ready for a long night of top notch boxing! This will be updated as the preliminary bouts take place.
Andrii Novytskyi got a solid knockout against Juan Torres, putting his man down in the third round with a beautiful long right hand. Torres could not beat the count and Novytskyi moves to 10-0 with that win, nine by knockout. Andrii Novytskyi is one to keep your eye on in the heavyweight division!
Experienced jouneyman Christian Lopez Flores gave Ziyad Almaayouf a good workout, making him put in a solid six rounds of jab-and-move boxing. A slippery customer, Flores managed to get out of trouble each time Almaayouf threatened to do damage, giving the young prospect an important lesson. The scoring was all one way, however, and Ziyad Almaayouf takes every round, moving to 5-0 with the decision win.
Roman Fury showed glimpses of his older brother’s style when facing Martin Svarc. Not everything was easy for either man, as these were two evenly matched fighters, but Fury eked out a 39-37 win to move to 4-0. Svarc is handed his first loss.
Louis Greene got a shocking first round TKO win when a peach of a right hook caught Jack McGann flush on the chin in the first 20 seconds and dropped him. McGann was clearly struggling as he got back to his feet and the referee waved the fight off. Greene slipped a lazy jab and landed the shot of his career to move to 17-4 with 11 wins by KO. McGann was seen as the favorite as an undefeated prospect and is now handed his first loss to move to 9-1-1. As an eliminator bout, Greene will now challenge for the WBC super welterweight Silver title.
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The main card is outstanding and the Joshua - Ngannou is not the only tasty clash on offer. The main support has a solid shout at being the true main event, as Zhilei Zhang takes on Joseph Parker. We break it all down for you here.
The Full Card
Anthony Joshua vs Francis Ngannou [heavyweight] 10 rounds
Zhilei Zhang* vs Joseph Parker [WBO interim heavyweight title] 12 rounds
Rey Vargas* vs Nick Ball [WBC featherweight title] 12 rounds
Gavin Gwynne vs Mark Chamberlain [lightweight] 12 rounds
Justis Huni vs Kevin Lerena [heavyweight] 10 rounds
Preliminary bouts
Jack McGann vs Louis Greene [super-welterweight] 10 rounds
Roman Fury vs Martin Svarc [cruiserweight] 4 rounds
Ziyad Almaayouf vs Christian Lopez Flores [super-lightweight] 6 rounds
Andrii Novytskyi vs Juan Torres [heavyweight] 8 rounds
The undercard is set to get underway at 11 am ET / 8 am PT.
Tale of the tape
Anthony Joshua
Age: 34
Stance: Orthodox
Height: 6ft 6in
Reach: 82”
Record: 27-3-0
Francis Ngannou
Age: 37
Stance: Orthodox
Height: 6ft 4in
Reach: 81”
Record: 0-1-0
WELCOME!!!
Welcome to Diario AS USA’s live coverage of the heavyweight clash between Anthony Joshua and Francis Ngannou in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia as the former unified world heavyweight champion continues to try and rebuild his career.
One year ago, Anthony Joshua was in a completely different place, comprehensively taken apart by Oleksandr Usyk, changing his longtime trainer Rob McCracken for Ben Davidson and in a desperate need to rebuild his shattered legacy.
Now, three solid wins in a row have set the former unified heavyweight champion up for a second bite at the apple. He has done it the right way, not jumping straight into title fights, not seeking out potentially destructive opponents, but working his way through solid, second-tier heavyweights. Franklin, Helenius, and Wallin are all good, top-ten names. Solid opposition. But none are explosive, none are going to take the division by storm.
Francis Ngannou is a great matchup for AJ. As a former MMA heavyweight champion, Ngannou has a magnificent ring IQ. He knows his way around a ring and most certainly has explosive power to potentially make a fight dangerous. Furthermore, on the back of his debut boxing match against Tyson Fury, he has shown that he belongs at this level. Ngannou took Fury the distance, never outboxing the Gypsy King, but giving him a few scares along the way.
This step is the perfect move for Joshua, with a solid performance setting him up for a potential bout with Fury, Wilder, or even a trilogy bout with Usyk.