Two of the top heavyweights in the world stepped into the ring on Friday. Anthony Joshua, the decorated boxer and former heavyweight champion of the world, took on Francis Ngannou, the former UFC heavyweight champion who has started to break into the world of boxing following the expiration of his contract with the MMA promotion.
The fight took place in Saudi Arabia, and while it ended up not taking especially long to crown a winner, at least those in attendance got to witness some fireworks at the very end. After dominating the first round and knocking Ngannou down as it came to an end, Joshua came out in the second and decided to end the night early. He knocked Ngannou down with a big right hand, and while he was able to get up, Ngannou was clearly a bit woozy. Joshua took advantage, as he threw one gigantic right hand that knocked Ngannou out cold and secured a win.
This ringside angle of @anthonyjoshua's finish is SAVAGE ☠️#JoshuaNgannou | #KnockoutChaos | #RiyadhSeason pic.twitter.com/YJYV8hPmmD
— DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) March 9, 2024
Anthony Joshua BRUTALLY knocks out Francis Ngannou in the second round.
🎥 @MikeBohn pic.twitter.com/6DeRyiVcOA
— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) March 9, 2024
JOSHUA PUTS NGANNOU OUT COLD #JoshuaNgannou pic.twitter.com/aHMkn1FEqE
— Steven Rae (@stevenrae_) March 9, 2024
Prior to this fight, no one had ever knocked out Ngannou in the UFC or in the world of boxing. While Ngannou had 20 fights in the UFC and left the promotion as its heavyweight champ, this was only his second boxing match — he lost via split decision to Tyson Fury in October.
As for Joshua, this marks his fourth win in a row after he lost back-to-back fights against Oleksandr Usyk. The first cost him the WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, and IBO heavyweight titles, while the second put all five of those and the vacant The Ring titles on the line.
