By AJ Johnson
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia – Anthony Joshua destroyed Francis Ngannou in Round 2 by spectacular knockout in their heavyweight bout Friday night in Saudi Arabia, it was a right hand that landed clean on the former UFC heavyweight champion’s chin that put him to sleep.
After Ngannou regained consciousness ringside officials administered oxygen to the 37-year-old fighter, who was boxing for just the second time.
Joshua, 34, scored a knockdown in the opening round with a right hand, and Ngannou appeared to be wobbly after he beat the count. Joshua scored another knockdown in Round 2, an equilibrium shot that connected on Francis’ left ear.
Immediately after Ngannou got up from the second knockdown, Joshua dropped him to the canvas for good with a perfect straight right that landed flush. Ngannou’s leg bent awkwardly under him as the MMA fighter fell to the canvas in a heap.
“On the route to the championship you should always stay focused,” said Joshua, a former two-time heavyweight champion. “This was me stepping aside from that mission. … But when I saw [Ngannou] and the fight against Tyson Fury, I was like ‘damn, this guy can fight’ so I said I need a piece of that.
“He’s an inspiration. … He’s a great champion. This doesn’t take away anything of his capabilities because in boxing it’s one or the other. He can come again.”
Ngannou shocked the boxing world back in October when he fought Tyson Fury, ESPN’s No. 1 heavyweight, and put the champ on his back in Round 3 and fought to a split-decision loss. Ngannou is considered among the UFC’s all-time best heavyweights, but it was still a shocking surprise that he was able to hang with the best heavyweight boxer in the world.
Joshua was scheduled to fight another former champion Deontay Wilder on this date before Joseph Parker scored an upset win over Wilder in December. Earlier that night, Joshua scored a fourth-round TKO victory over Otto Wallin.
“He believed in his dreams and he followed it,” Fury said. “He made a s— ton of money, which is fantastic to support his family. He had a great journey. Keep going if he wants to box. … He’s still undefeated as a champion in MMA. Just because he got beat here tonight, he can go back to MMA and destroy that world again. … Keep your chin high.”
Joshua(28-3, 25 KOs) is ESPN’s No. 3 heavyweight. The Olympic gold medalist won his first title in 2016 and made six defenses — including wins over Wladimir Klitschko and Parker — before he was KO’ed by Andy Ruiz in seven rounds in one of boxings all-time biggest upsets.
