Joshua is preparing to take on MMA fighter Ngannou in Saudi Arabia in March, with the Watford-born heavyweight plotting a path to eventually take on Tyson Fury in what would be among the most eagerly anticipated bouts in history.
Joshua was beaten by Oleksandr Usyk in 2021 and 2022, losing his WBO, IBF, and WBA belts in the process. Since then, Joshua has been on a redemption arc, beating Jermaine Franklin, Robert Helenius and Otto Wallin as he looks to return to boxing’s summit.
He is now set to take on Ngannou, who controversially lost to Fury in December by split decision.
Should Joshua claim a victory against the MMA’s hardest puncher, however, he may be forced to wait before facing Fury.
Saudi adviser Turki Alalshikh – who has been in charge of delivering major boxing events to the Gulf state – admitted that Joshua was in talks to face Croatian Filip Hrgović rather than his compatriot.
