Ngannou made his professional boxing debut against Fury last October and Joshua has been told he can take positives from watching the fight
Anthony Joshua has the edge over Tyson Fury going into his Francis Ngannou fight because the former UFC champion now has rounds under his belt, according to Eddie Hearn.
Ngannou exceeded expectations in his professional boxing debut against heavyweight champion Fury last October as he scored a knockdown and only lost by a single point. The decision was heavily scrutinised by fans but Ngannou is now solely focused on picking up his first win in the ring when he faces Joshua next month
There was no boxing footage to watch of Ngannou going into his fight against Fury but Hearn thinks ‘AJ’ can break down the former UFC champion from watching his fight with Fury. “This fight’s different. It’s a jeopardy fight. The good news is we’ve got 10 rounds of footage now,” Hearn told GiveMeSport.
“Fury had no footage, but you’ve still only got 10 rounds. It’s easier to break things down, but he’s still an unknown quantity and that’s what makes it difficult, and he can punch and he is strong, he’s got all these attributes. You’ve got to take him really seriously, but you must be mentally strong going into this fight.
“You have to be disciplined. You have to be brave as you always have. When the time comes, you have to make it count and you have to hurt this guy, and you have to take him out. He’s a man-mountain of a guy. It’s not delusion, but he truly believed he could beat Tyson Fury and he truly believes he can beat Anthony Joshua.
“I think Ngannou can beat anybody because of his power, but I think he’s always gonna be the underdog against someone who has perfected their craft for many years and is at the elite level of the game I think it’s going to be a great fight. I’m nervous, very nervous, but I believe AJ will do the business. I think if AJ is disciplined, but brutal, I think he wins the fight by stoppage.”
The winner of Joshua and Ngannou’s fight has been promised a shot at the undisputed world titles against either Fury or Oleksandr Usyk. That fight has a two-way rematch clause but Hearn thinks a fight between Joshua and Fury will be made instead, granted they both come out on top in their respective bouts.
