Anthony Joshua knocked out Francis Ngannou in the second round of a stirring victory during Friday’s heavyweight bout in Saudi Arabia.
Joshua, the British star, knocked down Ngannou in the first round, knocked him down again in the second round and then delivered the knockout punch at 2:38 of the second round.
He has now positioned himself for a shot at the undisputed heavyweight title and the winner of Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk.
Anthony Joshua dropped ex-UFC champion Ngannou in round one with a clean right hand, before doing the same in round two.
After Ngannou beat the referee’s count following the second knockdown, Joshua knocked the Cameroonian out cold with his very next punch – another right cross.
The knockout blow, a powerful right hand, left Ngannou out cold. Ngannou, the former UFC champion, was down on the canvas for more than a minute and received oxygen, according to the DAZN broadcast, it was a stunning setback for Ngannou, who knocked down Tyson Fury during his pro debut in October and looked impressive in a split-decision loss.
But Joshua, the two-time world champion, was in control from the outset Friday. With the win, “AJ” made it back-to-back wins under coach Ben Davison, a former trainer of Tyson Fury.
Billed as ‘Knockout Chaos’, Friday’s fight night was the latest event put on by Turki Al-Sheikh in Saudi Arabia.
Anthony Joshua has now recorded four consecutive victories since losing two fights in a row to Oleksandr Usyk.
The last three of those wins have all come by way of knockout.
