Anthony Joshua vs Francis Ngannou on Friday week is yet another mouthwatering heavyweight showdown in what is shaping up to be a golden 2024 for boxing, and Eddie Hearn cannot wait.
Hearn was very much not a believer in former UFC star Ngannou before he made his pro boxing debut against lineal heavyweight champion Tyson Fury last October.
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‘The Predator’ put up a terrific performance, having ‘The Gypsy King’ on the floor and in all sorts of trouble before finally dropping a controversial split decision.
Now Ngannou steps up against another heavyweight champion – the two-time king Joshua (27-3) – in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Hearn is now an Ngannou believer, and he says Joshua is preparing accordingly.
It’s a fight which comes with risk – losing to a relative novice would not be good for Joshua – but a win would position him to achieve a lifetime’s ambition. AJ is preparing accordingly, says his promoter.
Hearn on Joshua ‘jeopardy’
Hearn, speaking on Ariel Helwani’s MMA Hour, said: “When I went to the gym the other day to see AJ, he is taking this like Tyson Fury x 10, he’s taking this fight so seriously. Frank Warren talks about the jeopardy in this fight – that’s a great word for this fight. Because if you get beat, you’ve got beaten by a 0-1 guy.
“But when Turki Alalshikh, His Excellency says the winner of this fight will go on and fight for undisputed against the winner of Fury and Usyk, that to us is a dream chance because we’ve chased that for so long.”
Joshua claimed three victories in three fights in 2023 as he rebuilt after those back-to-back losses to Oleksandr Usyk in world title fights.
That excellent year culminated in a brilliant demolition job on dangerous Swede Otto Wallin in December. Notably, that time he had new trainer Ben Davison in his corner for the first time.
The Ben Davison factor
Hearn revealed what he’d seen behind the scenes before that bout, and why AJ is really and truly BACK.
“I can’t tell you how much I believe AJ is gonna beat Francis Ngannou and then he is going to beat the winner of Fury vs Usyk, and he’s going to become undisputed heavyweight world champion. I see a side of him that I haven’t seen for so long.
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“Before he fought Otto Wallin, I went in the changing rooms and he was hitting pads with Ben Davison, and I was ‘oh my God, he’s back and I’ve never seen anything like it’. Punching with ferocity, confidence, tactically completely on the same wavelength with Ben Davison.
“I hoped it would translate in the performance, and it did. Now we’re gonna see – it’s a week on Friday, two giants will meet in the ring in Riyadh. And when you say giants, this is the first time AJ has fought an opponent that’s outsized him.
“This guy is huge. When I turned to him at the press conference and starting talking to him, and then I turned to AJ, it was like a cruiserweight and a heavyweight. So this is a real threat. This is Godzilla and King Kong – two ginormous men and anything can happen in this fight.”
Will Ngannou go back to MMA?
Ngannou’s future after this fight has been in the headlines in recent days, with a return to MMA with PFL expected next. There are rumours though it may not happen at all.
Hearn gave his verdict, explaining: “I think if he gets destroyed by AJ, I think he’ll fight MMA. I think if it’s competitive, certainly if he wins, he’ll go on and potentially fight Tyson Fury. This fight’s gonna tell us a lot.”
