Anthony Joshua will face off against UFC star Francis Ngannou in a significant crossover boxing event scheduled for tonight in Saudi Arabia.
AJ is currently in the process of rebuilding his career following the loss of his world titles, entering 2024 on the heels of a three-fight win streak. The Brit continued his recovery from successive defeats to Oleksandr Usyk by knocking out Otto Wallin in December.
Initially slated to fight Deontay Wilder next, Joshua’s plans shifted after Wilder’s defeat to Joseph Parker on the same night, leading Joshua to pivot towards another of Tyson Fury’s conquests instead.
Fury and Usyk were supposed to engage in an undisputed showdown before Joshua’s return to the ring. However, that bout has been postponed until May, leaving AJ to remain in contention to either face the winner or step in as a replacement if the undisputed match is delayed once more.
The ten-round heavyweight clash is set to take place today, March 8th. This scheduling falls on a Friday due to the Saudi Arabia Grand Prix at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit, also happening this weekend.
The boxing event is once again scheduled at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where Joshua secured victory over Wallin and Ngannou faced defeat against Fury.
Timings for the event have been confirmed, with the undercard action commencing at 3:20 pm UK time. The ring-walks for Joshua vs. Ngannou are expected to begin at 11 pm, leading up to the official start time at 11:20 pm, which is 2:20 am local time.
Cameroonian fighter Ngannou expressed his desire to “knock Joshua out” in his second professional boxing match in Saudi Arabia. Ngannou made his debut in October, losing via split decision to WBC world champion Fury in a non-title bout. The Cameroonian-French fighter nearly caused an upset when he dropped Fury to the canvas with a left hook in that fight.
“I feel confident enough, based on my training, the hard work that I put in,” Ngannou stated during his pre-fight press conference on Wednesday.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JgfCZL03N1I?si=G9YGJu4627-b2P2S
