Izuchukwu Okosi
Former WBO and IBF world champion, Anthony Joshua, in the early hours of Saturday morning defeated Francis Ngannou in a two-round heavyweight bout in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia to underline his return to reckoning after a challenging 2023, reports Prime Business Africa.
Ngannou who made his debut at the top division in the fight against Tyson Fury last year received rave reviews for his promising start to his new career in the squared ropes despite the controversial win of Fury.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelHowever, Joshua, born of Nigerian parents but who represents Britain, ensured there was no upset in the making by knocking down the Cameroonian several times in the second round after a similar first round dominance.
The fight which started late Friday night and continued into the next morning was attended by some sporting icons like Ronaldo Nazario, Jose Mourinho and interestingly the man he might fight next, Tyson Fury.
READ ALSO: Anthony Joshua Suffers Third Heavyweight Loss To Usyk
Joshua, commonly called AJ in the boxing fraternity and Ngannou, were contesting the co-main event on the ‘Knockout Chaos’ card in Saudi Arabia and the knockdown was remarkably the first time that Ngannou would be sent to the canvass in his entire fighting career which includes his time at the UFC.
Fury is set to fight Oleksandr Usyk in May after their scheduled February 17 bout was postponed due to Fury’s facial injury.
Joshua had faced some stuttering moments in his career after a double defeat to Oleksandr Usyk but has rebounded with wins over Jermaine Franklin, Robert Helenius and Otto Wallin.
Izuchukwu Okosi is a Nigerian sports and entertainment journalist with two decades of experience in the media industry having begun his media journey in 2002 as an intern at Mundial Sports International (MSI) and Africa Independent Television (AIT), owners of Daar Communications Plc.
