MMA veteran Francis Ngannou is very confident in his ability to not only beat Anthony Joshua, but also to secure a knockout victory over the British superstar.
The two fighters are scheduled to collide in a ten round crossover boxing match on March 8 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Ngannou, a former UFC beltholder, made his professional boxing debut back in October, in a stunning performance against WBC world champion Tyson Fury.
The dangerous puncher was a tremendous underdog against Fury, who appeared to take his foe very lightly with rumors that he barely trained for the fight.
Ngannou dropped Fury in the third round, generated a cut on his forehead and bruised his eye. In what became a very competitive fight, Fury walked away with a razor-close split decision win.
“No one still knows what I can do,” Ngannou said to The MMA Hour. “That was my first fight in boxing. That was my first fight. As anyone, I’m just improving, and the gap of improvement for a beginner like me, it’s huge. I’m just a beginner improving.”
Ngannou is banking on a knockout victory, because he believes Fury has a much better chin than Joshua.
“I think most likely [I’ll be] knocking Anthony Joshua out,” Ngannou said. “I think that he’s easier to go down than Fury. I mean, not that he’s not a strong fighter. He’s a very tough fighter, but he’s easier to send down than Fury, and it’s harder for him to get back up than Fury.”
Joshua saw action last month in Saudi Arabia, where he battered and stopped Otto Wallin in five rounds. It was Joshua’s third win of the year.
Ngannou was impressed by the performance.
“He looked amazing. Congratulations to him. He was doing his job properly. His speed was there. He looked sharp – very sharp. But on the other hand, I think there wasn’t a response in front of him,” Ngannou said.
“I think I will have a better response in front of him that will put him not in such comfortable positions and situations. Things will change. Things will be different. I will not stand there and just look at him – no. It’s going to be different. I’m going to throw some bombs out there, and he’s going to be mindful of what he’s doing.”
Credit: Boxing Scene