Former unified world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua scored another stoppage win, this time making quick work of former UFC champion-turned-boxer Francis Ngannou in their 10-round main event on a night where his former foe Joseph Parker snatched the WBO interim heavyweight title – despite conceding two knockdowns against Joe Joyce’s conqueror Zhilei Zhang.
Joshua jolt leaves Ngannou in a heap
R2, 2:38 — Anthony Joshua bt. Francis Ngannou via KO
- Briton confirms he wants to fight the Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk winner next, with their unification bout rescheduled for May 17 after the original February date was cancelled on two weeks’ notice
- Joshua’s post-fight interview with DAZN’s Ade Oladipo: “It is what it is… Francis is an inspiration, great champion and this doesn’t take away from his capabilities. He can come again if dedicated [to boxing].” it’s all down to the Ben Davison performance center. I’m just here to fight, lock myself away in my cage and I’m down for whatever… just wanna fight.”
- Rest when I’m done: Joshua tells me in post-fight press conference that he wants to continue with more activity after fourth bout in 11 months, ready for a June-July return as Fury-Usyk likely tied up until year’s end
RIYADH — In one of many prefight media obligations for the rights holders, Anthony Joshua and Francis Ngannou played a game. Queensberry posted a video asking the pair questions, side-by-side, and one stands out: one word to describe the other?
Joshua described Ngannou as a dreamer and everything about this display felt pointed, from ringwalk music to the post-fight speech with WBC champion Tyson Fury – Ngannou’s maiden boxing opponent in October – watching ringside.
After a predictably tense opening minute, Ngannou swung wildly forwards with a haymaker and met fresh air. Joshua appeared content to play the game and jab him at mid-range before landing a right-hand over the top, flooring him late in the first.
Francis found his feet, albeit belatedly to beat the referee’s count, but it was exactly the sort of statement the bullish Briton would want to produce in the early going.
If nothing else, the Cameroonian opposite him may heed warning and respect such spiteful power flying at speed in his direction. Instead, that first knockdown foreshadowed a fearsome finish for all to witness as the former UFC champion’s back leg buckled underneath him and jubilant cheers soon turned to a hushed silence.
That’s because many realised Ngannou was still down, motionless, receiving oxygen in the ring as the squared circle became jam-packed with personnel: security, medical professionals, the fighters’ teams and all sorts. Joshua had done what many thought Fury would do, and the manner of this showing was brutally brilliant.
For all the talk about his durability, whether he’d box cautiously or stay at range against a hard-hitting heavyweight, this was a throwback to the sort of Joshua performance that made neutrals fall in love with him over the past decade.
You’ve got an early flight home to catch? No worry, it’ll be over fairly soon. The speed at which he picked Ngannou apart rather quickly showed the differences in skill level and boxing nuance, with Francis conceding in the post-fight presser he didn’t even feel the punches landing on him. Didn’t see them coming fast enough, either.
The next logical step is, after a medically-enforced break – six months or more – Ngannou should return to MMA and make his PFL debut against Renan Fereira.
Depending on how successful he is there, the itch will undoubtedly linger for him to return to boxing and right the wrongs, likely against a softer touch. Whether the wider interest is there, especially after such an emasculating scene here, remains unclear.
Parker pips Zhang in slow-burning contest
113-113, 114-112, 115-111: Joseph Parker bt. Zhilei Zhang, becomes new WBO interim heavyweight champion
- Parker attributes gritty win to his work with head trainer Andy Lee, who repeatedly told him between rounds to maintain his composure – easier said than done – after being knocked down in third and eighth rounds
- On what has changed for him since the Joe Joyce defeat: “Hard work, that’s where it comes from!” as presence of rematch clause for the Chinese is immediately apparent during post-fight festivities
The tension was palpable, crowd largely ground down to silence and you could feel it: top-level heavyweights were here and letting their hands go.
Parker landed the first meaningful punch, a snapping right to help him edge off the ropes, before an instant reply came from the Chinese.
Parker was busier, hitting to the body and arms early, as Zhang’s forward movement – even without expending much output – kept the Kiwi honest.
Caught by a right hook deep into the second stanza, a timely warning sign for the former world champion to showcase that ringcraft and stay off the ropes at all times.
Parker had a decent third round, until he didn’t. Zhang stung him with a lazor-like sharp left hard to floor him, before continuing the barrage against said ropes picking his high guard apart with ease.
Survive the round he managed, but with blood streaming down his face and Zhang growing in confidence, Parker needed an equaliser and fast before he’d suffer the same fate Joe Joyce did last year.
Despite still circling into Zhang’s lead hand, he was undeterred and unloaded some looping haymakers of his own in the fourth – akin to the Deontay Wilder bout – catching the 40-year-old’s attention.
Into the fifth and more of the same danger from both, albeit in different areas. Parker repeatedly targeted the body again, landing a few one-twos for good measure, but every Zhang punch was denting him further, even if not the most active.
Would this strategy last the full 12-round distance? You could be forgiven for thinking not, midway through round seven. Parker’s guard was pierced, more than once, by straight shots as Zhang patiently probed with single shots finding their home.
A furious flurry at the start of the eighth could’ve spelt trouble for the former world champion, and danger soon loomed large again. A straight left and cuffing right combo had Parker down on his knees, another 10-8 round against him as he looked knowingly at his corner, as if to say he knew what he did wrong there.
Chinks in the defensive armour were showing, Zhang tiring – he’s human after all – Parker increasingly tagging him with rights and two-punch flurries despite the sleepy pace this was being fought at.
Having conceded two knockdowns, Parker needed to pick up the pace and finish strong if his early work was going to age well at the final bell.
A single counter left started a furious sequence of attacks, Zhang only able to reply intermittently, and into a final round they went.
It was the Kiwi again doing the better work, much to his corner’s visible delight, banking another round in a decent display where his stock again rises another notch.
Ball denied world gold after dubious split draw
114-112 Vargas, 116-110 Ball, 113-113: Rey Vargas vs. Nick Ball ends in a split draw, Vargas retains WBC featherweight title
Nick Ball began as he meant to continue, with calculated pressure and sharp defence against a champion with more questions to answer after being outboxed in an unsuccessful attempt to become a three-weight world champion last February.
Armed with a tight guard and that probing left hand, the younger man did the noteworthy work through three minutes. Vargas was ticked off for a low blow, trying to find his range early against a much smaller opponent slowly proving hard to hit clean.
Vargas slipped on the canvas early in the second, then had success boxing on the inside momentarily before Ball’s pressure during those closely-contested exchanges was paying dividends. He stung the Mexican with a well-timed shot before continuing to win the rough-housing moments in close quarters.
Ball was given a warning early in the third for what was described as a judo throw, unhappy that Vargas was holding too long and disrupting rhythm in a fight without much to that point, though the Scouser’s pressure persisted as his left landed frequently enough to edge gritty rounds.
Vargas’ attacks were hitting gloves in the fourth and Ball kept tagging him, albeit guilty of winging his power punches as time wore on.
Making this a physical affair worked in the 27-year-old’s favour, even if the referee seemed a little trigger happy to stop them working on the inside.
Ball appeared to buzz Vargas briefly in the sixth, as the crowd were again transfixed on another sighting outside the ring, the referee’s hands a frequent sight here to gesticulate slips or break them apart.
Clearly frustrated by this stage, the Scouser couldn’t afford to be careless with his entries and walk onto a counterpunch.
Unsettled and under increasing pressure from Ball’s front-foot approach, things would worsen for Vargas during a testing round seven – wobbled backwards on more than one occasion by a whipping right hand, then a counter left of his own was undone by more relentless movement from the challenger.
Vargas got in his face at the bell and they had to be separated, Ball smirking almost as if he knew the tide was turning.
The challenger’s cuffing right-left combo was scored as a knockdown to finish the very next round, Vargas duly punished for excessive holding and leaving his head exposed.
He didn’t agree and it looked harsh on the video replays, but he couldn’t say it wasn’t coming given how easily he fell to the canvas on numerous occasions prior.
Ball’s work was messier in the ninth, complete with a few stinging shots in-between, though they exchanged punishing body shots midway through round ten during another tetchy stanza where the champion’s attacks were increasingly infrequent.
Ball floored him clean in the final half-minute, the third of a three-punch combo with a long-awaited right, having whizzed narrowly wide on a series of sequences which left the crowd expecting one would connect at some stage.
Vargas couldn’t open up and leave his upper body susceptible to those attacks, and didn’t have the patience nor guile to keep Ball at distance like he pledged prefight.
This resembled bull vs. matador and rather than successfully spin his way out of danger, the rampaging bull continued chipping away at a champion whose title was fast slipping out of reach. He fared better in the final round, but didn’t do nearly enough over the second-half here to defend his title.
Madrimov masters Kurbanov to become world champion
R5, 2:20 — Israil Madrimov bt. Magomed Kurbanov via TKO, is new WBA world light-middleweight champion
- “It doesn’t matter who’s next, I’ll fight anyone in the division. I want to fight here again next!” Madrimov says after a career-best display as Riyadh crowd roars their appreciation for 29-year-old
- His promoter Eddie Hearn declares Uzbek international a young, new version of two-time middleweight world champion Gennadiy Golovkin and wants to clean up at 154lbs: “He’s an animal, got that Uzbek power and walked through Kurbanov… nothing less than undisputed is the plan.”
A lot was said about Israil Madrimov, his stellar amateur pedigree and how he’d fare in a career-best bout for world honours at a time where the light-middleweight division no longer has an undisputed ruler. This showing shows he may mirror Kazakh’s Janibek Alimkhanuly at 160lbs as a titleholder few want to face.
After a quiet opening to the first of two world title fights, Madrimov took charge here, landing a crowd-pleasing lunging hook staggering Kurbanov back momentarily before the Russian regained his balance and flicked out body punches in response.
Madrimov was hooking his way to sustained success in the third, pressing forward and moving well in the fourth while pinging Kurbanov back against the ropes midway through round five as you could sense the crowd were baying for a stoppage.
Distracted by various stars walking ringside, from Jose Mourinho to Ronaldo Fenomeno, an unanswered combo against the ropes saw referee Steve Gray halt the contest, capping an impressive night’s work for the Kazakh as the latter diverted attention from the opposite side. They sensed this was a foregone conclusion.
Chamberlain crunches gamely Gwynne
R4, 2:36 – Mark Chamberlain bt. Gavin Gwynne, wins WBA International lightweight title
- Chamberlain’s post-fight interview after a career-best victory and stoppage: “A win here is amazing, I wanted to make a statement. This goes out to His Excellency, I’d love to be back here in the summer – thanks to my promoter Frank [Warren] for believing in me. I’m the best in Britain.”
- Turki Alalshaikh is said to have personally requested for the Portsmouth man to feature on this card, such was his high opinion on the 24-year-old’s fighting style in a division without many British talents near or at the top
If you didn’t know before, it didn’t take more than a few seconds to tell this domestic lightweight duel would be fought at a frenetic pace.
Logic would say it favours the younger, more eager contender especially after Mark Chamberlain passed his Artjoms Ramlavs gutcheck at York Hall last time out.
Chamberlain didn’t give Gwynne a moment’s rest, pressing him against the ropes and receiving as good as he got with this contested largely boxed at short-range in the early going, both intent on asserting themselves as the stronger.
There was an ominous looking pause before round two began, the referee Howard Foster assessing a cut across Gwynne’s right eye and that visual only served to propel Chamberlain into an even more rugged, aggressive approach as he unloaded combinations and the Welshman’s eye worsened.
Another inspection, this time from the doctor, came before the third and a suspected broken orbital bone wasn’t helping Gwynne as he increasingly became a standing target in centre ring – firing back less often as Chamberlain attacked him well, body-head-body and landed lefts his opponent couldn’t see coming quickly enough.
Vaseline over the eyelid only illuminated the damage as they went into round four, Chamberlain landed two cuffing punches right on the cut and peppered Gwynne with more punishment against the corner, then against the ropes, before it was mercifully stopped after an unanswered combination to the body.
Huni survives serious scare
96-94, 96-94, 98-92: Justis Huni bt. Kevin Lerena via UD, new WBO global heavyweight champion
- Huni’s post-fight interview after narrowly evading a shock defeat: “I’m glad my legs were strong enough to stick it out. I was expecting this kinda fight, was just a matter of time when I adjusted. I’m ready for the 5v5, up for the challenge and want to be a part of it.”
- His promoter Eddie Hearn poured cold water on that, saying: “I’d like to see him fight a big heavyweight, this was a massive learning fight. He was hurt badly but must improve against better opposition so when the tests come, nights like this make him ready. We’ll speak to Mick [his manager, Francis], came through an exceptional fighter but don’t wanna go too quickly, box ticked against a world-class fighter.”
- Kevin Lerena, who lost his mother suddenly on Thursday, performed expertly given the circumstances and will rue failing to finish a fight he was largely bossing in the early rounds. “I had him hurt in rounds one, two and ten… I’ll go back to the drawing board, still at bridgerweight… kudos to him for staying upright, a tough competitor.”
In the main card opener, Justis Huni struggled with Kevin Lerena’s southpaw stance and was moments from being stopped in a dramatic final round but survived to stay perfect as a professional after an invaluable experience under the bright lights.
The highly-rated Australian needs more tests of this level, in the gym and on fight night, after a defensively vulnerable display saw him too willing to trade and absorb damage. Better opposition would’ve gleefully added them to their knockout reel.
Lefts landed early and often for the South African from the off, catching Huni clean as the 8-0 pro shifted position in centre before being stung and pinned in the corner. It foreshadowed an uncomfortable start, needing to be more defensively savvy.
Lerena was connecting on body-head combos in the second, then digging uppercuts as Huni’s flat-footed tendencies were punished.
Lerena landed more combinations after wobbling the 24-year-old, before referee Victor Loughlin separated them briefly. It allowed the cobwebs to clear for the prospect, though punch activity was key as time wore on.
Piercing Lerena’s high defensive guard was important but the older man was scoring points with ease, flicking out the right jab and dictating the pace, almost as if he was comfortable with the power flashing back at him.
Admittedly a difficult round to score given the limited punch output from both, Lerena again seemed more threatening in the final moments. That continued in the fourth, stinging Huni with the Aussie’s back against the ropes in the final minute.
Justis needed to wake up and quickly, at a time where you can never predict the judges’ scorecards – going tit-for-tat with a seasoned veteran wasn’t a wise strategy given his limited head movement. A few whipping hooks were a whisker away from his chin, and continued to flicker dangerously over time.
Lerena negated any encouraging work from the youngster by staying on his chest, always firing back after absorbing a punch or fleeting flurry, and keeping him uneasy across multiple angles.
Almost landed a wicked power left in the fifth, it was clear he was enjoying himself while taking time to do so – ending another round strong to reiterate that.
Huni would naturally be expected to go through the gears but looked laboured by the sixth, mouth open and allowing too much in the way of attacks to deter an underdog who has fought far better opposition in the past, having notably threatened a shock win against Daniel Dubois in Dec. 2022.
More of the same came, exchanging power shots with jeopardy a frequent theme. By the seventh, scorecards could’ve been all over the place. Huni had perhaps his best round here and yet, almost as soon as he did something well, he overshoots on a punch and got stung clean or absorbed a lazy combo for his troubles.
The last 20 seconds were most noteworthy for Lerena landing frequently on his head, again rattling the senses too easily.
I had it 5-2 at this point and Huni began boxing with more intensity in round eight. Lerena threw uppercuts early, Huni matched him there before targeting the body more in a closely-contested stanza where he finally finished as the aggressor – snapping Lerena’s head back with a stiff jab, then urgently unloading combos.
Into the final two rounds, Huni needed to sustain that aforementioned pressure to emerge with his perfect record intact.
Huni was teeing off more and visibly thinking before picking his shot selection as Lerena took backwards steps but fired back at times – tiredness a factor – but a slick counter against the ropes reminded everyone of the danger he posed.
The tenth felt like a must-win round for both and Huni was timing his entries well, sweat flying off Lerena’s head rather theatrically in the opening minute. All that good work almost went unrewarded after the 24-year-old was wobbled badly by a counter left and suddenly survival mode was thrust upon the heavy pre-fight favourite.
It didn’t happen once but twice, though Lerena bizarrely retreated when the end was in touching distance. The fans couldn’t quite believe it, nor media row and that sequence rather typified a fight there for the taking, that will be painful to rewatch.
Prelim results as Greene blasts past McGann
- Former British, Commonwealth light-middleweight champion Louis Greene calls for Sam Gilley rematch after wasting no time to score a fantastic first-round knockout win over Liverpool’s Jack McGann
- Hard work pays off! Greene cuts passionate post-fight speech: “Everyone mentions my four losses but not the 16 wins… I won every title away from home. I gave up work to come here and was confident, me and my dad come from nothing – I was on my way to prison and my dad’s a postman – he’s sharing all of this with me. This is for my three kids watching.”
- Ukrainian heavyweight prospect Andrii Novytskyi now 10-0 after KO on card’s opener, before unbeaten hopefuls Ziyad Almaayouf and Roman Fury also successful elsewhere over the distance in respective fights
Fresh from a competitive but unsuccessful title defence vs. Sam Gilley in October, Louis Greene boxed like a disrespected man and needed 89 seconds to inflict Jack McGann’s first career defeat, winning their WBC Silver light-middleweight eliminator.
He unloaded unanswered combination punches with uppercuts and frantic straights en route to a vicious first-round stoppage win, before calling for a Gilley rematch.
The 31-year-old also dismissed Ariel Helwani’s post-fight suggestion he came into this with a chip on his shoulder after the aforementioned decision defeat.
“I thought it’d go ten rounds, I expected a hard banger. Nothing happened to me, now we [he and Gilley] will get it on again, have to wait and see. That was a fight of the year contender and close.”
- Greene spoke candidly after a fast night’s work
The matchmaking for this contest was ambitious to say the least and McGann needed an oxygen mask after a prolonged medical assessment in the corner, staggering to his feet but clearly on instinct alone. Given his performance last time he was in Riyadh, this was a nightmare scenario that ultimately came true.
Tyson Fury’s younger brother Roman wasn’t flawless by any means, being buzzed twice in the final six minutes, but nonetheless logged a four-round decision win (39-37) vs. Czech Republic’s Martin Svarc in a tussle of two unbeaten hopefuls.
With the WBC heavyweight champion watching ringside and father John providing instructions in his corner, the 27-year-old needs more nuance and must get used to boxing the big boys after confirming cruiserweight was no longer comfy to make.
“Every fight is a learning one, he was a strong kid that came to win and represent his country well… I’m buzzing to win after where I was two years ago. I’m still waiting to wake up, it feels like a dream,” he said post-fight.
Saudi-born light-welterweight Ziyad Almaayouf threatened a finish during the final round but had to settle for a 60-54 win over Christian Lopez Flores, as the 23-year-old moved to 5-0 as a professional on appearance number three in his homeland.
In the card’s opener at heavyweight, Andrii Novytskyi improved to 10-0 with his ninth stoppage win – this time against overmatched opponent Juan Torres.
A left-right combo on the American’s head didn’t appear to land flush in real-time but must’ve seriously rattled his equilibrium as the 37-year-old couldn’t beat the referee’s count, three rounds in, during a sluggish start to kick off the evening’s prelims.
Ukraine’s Novytskyi should be pushing his team to find him better opposition on big stages like these if the 28-year-old wants to showcase his skills against someone who’d actually make the fight competitive, as he looks to rise up into prominence.
Picture source: Queensberry, Getty Images, Matchroom Boxing
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