THE RESULT: A brutal finish to a silly fight, Anthony Joshua ended the boxing ambition of Francis Ngannou at the two minute and 38-second mark of round two. The finish was delivered by a huge right hand which left Ngannou, knocked down twice already, out cold on the ring canvas.
KEY MOMENTS: Despite a positive start in the fight, Ngannou switched to southpaw halfway through round one and found himself nailed by a beautiful and perfectly executed right cross thrown by Joshua. This shot put Ngannou on the deck for the first time in his professional career and the second and third knockdowns were to follow in round two. Both of those knockdowns were equally impressive, with the second of them, the last, as good a shot as Joshua has ever thrown as a pro.
RECORDS: Joshua moves his pro record to 28-3 (25), while Ngannou, 37, still looks for his first pro win, with his record now standing at 0-2 (0).
TALKING POINT: While Joshua should receive credit for doing what he was expected to do to Ngannou, and doing something Tyson Fury was unable to do in October, this result must still come with an asterisk. Ngannou, after all, is a fighter without a professional boxing win to his name and showed no signs tonight of that changing anytime soon; particularly if he continues to fight world-class heavyweights. “Don’t leave boxing,” Joshua said to Ngannou in the ring after the fight, but this fight, and Joshua’s right hand, could have been the reality check required to keep Ngannou in mixed martial arts or at least, if keen to box, persuade him to drop down a level or two.
QUOTABLE: “On the route to the championship, you should always stay focused,” Joshua said after the fight. “This was me stepping aside on that mission. But when I saw the fight with him (Ngannou) and Tyson Fury, I was like, ‘Damn, this guy can fight!’ I was like, ‘I need a piece of that!’ He’s an inspiration. We broke bread together and he’s a great champion. This doesn’t take anything away from his capabilities. He can come again. Remember, he’s two fights in and he’s fought the best. He can go a long way if he stays dedicated. But it’s up to him.”
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT: Asked if his next fight is going to be against the winner of Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk, Joshua smiled and said, “Yes, it is.”
