Anthony Joshua vs. Francis Ngannou

 

 

Anthony Joshua (left) and Francis Ngannou (right)

Following his impressive stoppage of Otto Wallin in December 2023, Anthony Joshua was linked with IBF number one ranked Filip Hrgović or WBO "interim" titleholder Zhilei Zhang.^[1] However in January 2024 it was confirmed that he would face former UFC champion Francis Ngannou, who in his only previous boxing bout scored a knockdown against WBC and Lineal champion Tyson Fury before losing a somewhat controversial split decision.^[2][3]

Before the main event, Israil Madrimov stopped Magomed Kurbanov to win the vacant WBA Super Welterweight belt. This was followed by Nick Ball challenging WBC featherweight champion Rey Vargas. After twice flooring the champion (once appearing to push him before handing a left hook) the bout was ruled a draw with scores of 116–110 for Ball, 114–112 for Vargas and 113–113.^[4]

Knockout Chaos:Zhilei Zhang vs. Joseph Parker

Title(s) on the line	WBO interim heavyweight title
Tale of the tape
Boxer   Zhilei Zhang   Joseph Parker Nickname "Big Bang" "Lupesoliai La'auliolemalietoa" Hometown Zhoukou, Henan, China Auckland, Auckland Region, New Zealand Pre-fight record 26–1–1 (21 KOs) 34–3 (23 KOs) Age 40 years, 10 months 32 years, 1 month Height 6 ft 6 in (198 cm) 6 ft 4 in (193 cm) Weight 291+1⁄2 lb (132 kg) 247+1⁄2 lb (112 kg) Style Southpaw Orthodox Recognition WBO Interim Heavyweight Champion TBRB No. 2 Ranked Heavyweight The Ring No. 3 Ranked Heavyweight WBO No. 2 Ranked Heavyweight WBA/WBC No. 3 Ranked Heavyweight The Ring/TBRB No. 4 Ranked Heavyweight
Result
Parker wins via 12th-round MD

 

 

Zhilei Zhang (left) and Joseph Parker (right)

In the chief support WBO "Interim" titleholder Zhilei Zhang faced former WBO heavyweight champion Joseph Parker (WBO: 2nd WBC / WBA: 3rd).

Parker was dropped twice in the bout, once in 3rd with a left hand and once in the 8th with a left-right hook combination. However Zhang's lack of output compared to Parker cost him, as two of the judges scored it for Parker 114–112 & 115–111, with the third having it 113–113.

Joshua dominated the bout, knocking down Ngannou, who switched to southpaw, with a straight right hand (a punch often dubbed as the 'southpaw killer') down the pipe in the 1st round. Ngannou beat the count and reverted to orthodox but was floored again in the 2nd. He again rose to his feet, but Joshua finished the fight with another right hand that left Ngannou flat on the canvas for several minutes afterwards.^[5][6]

Speaking in the ring after the bout promoter Eddie Hearn said "You’re looking at the number one heavyweight in the world, unquestionably. On this form, there is no man in the world that can beat him in the heavyweight division." before stating his desire for Joshua to face the winner of the planned May 18 bout between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk.^[7]

Ngannou later confirmed that he will continue boxing despite the loss. However he dropped out of the top twenty rankings of WBC due to his second straight loss.^[8]

Weight Class		vs.		Method	Round	Time	Notes
Main Card
Heavyweight	Anthony Joshua	def.	Francis Ngannou	KO	2 (10)	2:38
Heavyweight	Joseph Parker	def.	Zhilei Zhang (c)	MD	12		Note 1
Featherweight	Rey Vargas (c)	vs.	Nick Ball	SD	12		Note 2
Super Welterweight	Israil Madrimov	def.	Magomed Kurbanov	TKO	5 (10)	2:20	Note 3
Lightweight	Mark Chamberlain	def.	Gavin Gwynne	TKO	4 (10)	2:48	Note 4
Heavyweight	Justis Huni	def.	Kevin Lerena	UD	10		Note 5
Super Welterweight	Louis Greene	def.	Jack McGann	TKO	1 (10)	1:29
Heavyweight	Roman Fury	def.	Martin Svarc	PTS	4
Super Lightweight	Ziyad Almaayouf	def.	Christian Lopez Flores	PTS	6
Heavyweight	Andrii Novytskyi	def.	Juan Torres	KO	3 (8)	2:43

^Note 1 For WBO interim heavyweight title
^Note 2 For WBC featherweight title
^Note 3 For WBA super-welterweight title
^Note 4 For WBA Inter-continental lightweight title
^Note 5 For WBO Global heavyweight title