The exact date for the mega-money bout between AJ and
Ngannou will announced at a press conference in London on January 15.
However, his Excellency Turki Alalshikh has confirmed that
the pair will go toe-to-toe as a part of Riyadh Season.
Joshua had been provisionally scheduled to face Deontay
Wilder following his win over Otto Wallin on December 23.
However, that deal broke down after Wilder lost to Joseph
Parker, with the judges scoring the bout 118-111, 120-108, 120-108 in the
Kiwi’s favour.
The proposed date for the Joshua vs Wilder bout was March 9,
with both parties signing on the dotted line ahead of their respective bouts in
December.
Therefore, many believe the bout between AJ and Ngannou will
replace the proposed fight between the British heavyweight and Wilder.
AJ stated his interest in fighting Ngannou after the former
UFC star broke into the WBC’s top 10 heavyweight rankings after his first
professional boxing match.
No one gave Ngannou anything other than a puncher’s chance
on his boxing debut against Tyson Fury last October.
However, Ngannou proved his worth against the Gypsy King –
knocking the WBC champion to the canvas in the third round before ultimately
losing on a split decision.
Many punters felt Ngannou did enough across the 10 round
contest to win the fight and said that the Cameroonian had been ‘robbed’ to
protect Fury’s fight with Oleksandr Usyk.
However, the majority of boxing experts agreed that Fury was
the rightful winner on the night – just edging past the Cameroonian after a
disappointing performance from the Gypsy King.
Nevertheless, Ngannou walked away from the bout with a
massive amount of credit and established himself as a worthwhile contender in
the heavyweight division.
Meanwhile, Joshua continued his quest to return to the top
of the heavyweight division by beating Otto Wallin on the Day of Reckoning.
Joshua put on a boxing masterclass, forcing Wallin's corner
to step in and call off the fight after five rounds.
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