Anthony Joshua vs Francis Ngannou press conference LIVE: Latest updates ahead of fight in Saudi Arabia
Re-live updates after the fighters shared a stage and traded words, two days before their heavyweight clash
Anthony Joshua and Francis Ngannou went face to face at a press conference on Wednesday, just 48 hours before fight night in Saudi Arabia.
Former two-time heavyweight champion Joshua will box Ngannou, a former UFC champion, in Riyadh on Friday (8 March), in the latter’s second fight in the sport. The Cameroonian, 37, made his boxing debut in October, flooring WBC champion Tyson Fury en route to a controversial decision loss.
Now Ngannou has returned to Riyadh for another clash with a Briton, as he prepares to face “AJ”, 34. Joshua’s last fight also came in the Saudi city, as he stopped Otto Wallin in five rounds in December. With that, the Olympic gold medalist made it three wins from three fights in 2023, following his stoppage of Robert Helenius and decision victory over Jermaine Franklin.
Joshua vs Ngannou has been billed as “Knockout Chaos”, but before the heavyweights trade punches, they traded words at Wednesday’s press conference. Re-live updates below.
Real-life Rocky? Francis Ngannou’s story is beyond any Hollywood script
When Francis Ngannou’s heartbreaking, tear-jerking, awe-inspiring, miraculous life is imagined as a motion picture – and it will be – Hollywood’s chosen scribes will trade sheepish glances in the writers’ room. Forget any fantasy film they have worked on, any cheesy sporting drama, any puffed-up biopic; they will ask themselves how to tone down Ngannou’s story, how to make it more believable, how to avoid raised eyebrows, rolling pupils and dismissive scoffs in cinemas.
That is because even the most creative, unhinged or audacious scriptwriter would not dare to conjure a narrative with the kind of backstory, plot twists and three-act structure that define Ngannou’s career.
The Cameroonian’s first act would take place in his country of birth, where at just 10 years old he was leaking streaks of sweat and drops of blood in a sand quarry in Batie. This start in life combined physical labour with a need to provide, a situation not fit for any child. That is to say nothing of the more relatable life-shaping events affecting a young Ngannou: his parents’ divorce when the future fighter was just six, a struggle to gain a formal education.
Yet even with that lack of education, Ngannou exhibited a precocious wisdom – one that explains so much of his impossible success...
Full article:
Real-life Rocky? Francis Ngannou’s story is beyond any Hollywood script
He worked in a sand quarry at the age of 10, lived homeless on the streets of Paris, then won UFC gold and is now boxing the heavyweights of his generation. Ngannou’s life and career are destined to be displayed on the big screen, writes Alex Pattle
Anthony Joshua faces Francis Ngannou jeopardy – but holds key advantage over Tyson Fury
Here is an excerpt from Steve Bunce’s preview of Friday’s main event...
“The fun carnival of boxing in Saudi Arabia ended in the third round last October when Francis Ngannou sent Tyson Fury sprawling to the canvas.
“The fun was finished in that shocking moment; boxing is not football, snooker, darts, tennis, Formula One or golf – boxing is far more dangerous, and the very best plans, schemes and bank vaults are useless against a well-placed left hook. One punch, less than a second in time, and the schedule gets ripped up.
“Big Francis, the reigning UFC heavyweight champion before he left the promotion to begin a boxing career, dropped Fury and that led to Fury pulling out of the “Fight of the Century” against Oleksandr Uysk, which was planned for December. That, in turn, led to Deontay Wilder fighting that night and losing to Joseph Parker; that led to Wilder not fighting Anthony Joshua and, instead, Joshua fighting Ngannou on Friday in Riyadh. It was just one solitary left hook.
“Ngannou vs Joshua is made for Saudi, it’s made for the new audience, it’s made for the money that is now available, and it will deliver enough thrills and spills to silence any purists. The Fury vs Ngannou fight was so much more competitive than most people expected; Ngannou’s family and liars believed it would be close. This fight, just Ngannou’s second under boxing rules, will be even better.”
Full article:
Joshua faces Ngannou jeopardy – but holds key advantage over Fury
The Briton is approaching another shot at a world heavyweight title but former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou presents a threat after almost shocking Tyson Fury in his boxing debut
Joshua vs Ngannou press conference LIVE
Anthony Joshua and Francis Ngannou will go face to face at a press conference today, just 48 hours before fight night in Saudi Arabia.
Former two-time heavyweight champion Joshua will box Ngannou, a former UFC champion, in Riyadh on Friday (8 March), in the latter’s second fight in the sport. The Cameroonian, 37, made his boxing debut in October, flooring WBC champion Tyson Fury en route to a controversial decision loss.
Now Ngannou has returned to Riyadh for another clash with a Briton, as he prepares to face “AJ”, 34. Joshua’s last fight also came in the Saudi city, as he stopped Otto Wallin in five rounds in December. With that, the Olympic gold medalist made it three wins from three fights in 2023, following his stoppage of Robert Helenius and decision victory over Jermaine Franklin.
Joshua vs Ngannou has been billed as “Knockout Chaos”, but before the heavyweights trade punches, they will trade words at today’s press conference.
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