Joshua says he can ‘make a statement’ and knock Ngannou out
The former world heavyweight champion believes he can get a convincing win against the MMA star and get a title shot again.
Anthony Joshua and Francis Ngannou are making their final preparations ahead of their much-anticipated crossover fight on Friday, which will take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The Watford native will be looking to record his fourth consecutive victory when he takes on the French-Cameroonian knockout artist and the 28th win in his boxing career.
However, this will be one of the most dangerous tests that Joshua has ever faced. The former UFC star isn’t known for his boxing skills and IQ, but he possesses great power and determination, something that could give AJ a scare or two.
Despite Joshua being the clear favorite to get away with the win, many boxing pundits believe that the African fighter has a real shot at upsetting the more experienced boxer, mostly based on what Ngannou showed against Tyson Fury in October.
Joshua feels confident and believes he can KO Ngannou
Joshua has been defeated three times as a professional, once by the power puncher Andy Ruiz Jr., and twice by Oleksandr Usyk, who will fight Fury for all the marbles in May.
Against the Ukrainian, he was outpointed in close affairs, while against Ruiz, Joshua was rocked and ended up losing via technical knockout. The Brit learned his lesson and changed his strategy in the rematch against the American, using the fundamentals to keep his opponent at bay and get a points win.
That way of approaching the fight could be the same one stepping into the ring against Ngannou, although he thinks he could even stop the former MMA world champion.
“I believe I can knock him out”, Joshua said when asked about his opponent. “Definitely. I would love to knock him out and make a statement. Physically I feel strong, feeling good. Strong enough to get the job done and mentally I’m in a place where I’m ready for war. I’m looking forward to the challenge”, he stated.
If Joshua loses the fight, he could very well decide to hang up the gloves, as he would hardly get any other big-money fights against top names, while a win for Ngannou would mean everything. If that was the case, he could have a shot against either Fury or Usyk and retire from the MMA world to look for big-money fights in the sweet science.