Boxing star Anthony Joshua shuts down retirement speculations following is KO loss to Daniel Dubois.
[autotag]Anthony Joshua[/autotag] won’t hang up the gloves.
The British boxing star quickly shut down retirement speculations following his latest defeat in the ring. Joshua was knocked out by [autotag]Daniel Dubois[/autotag] in their heavyweight championship fight for the IBF title this past Saturday at Wembley Stadium in London.
The 34-year-old Joshua intends to cotnue fighting and get back in his winning ways.
“You’re probably asking, do I still want to continue fighting?” Joshua said at the post-fight press conference. “Of course I want to continue fighting. We took a shot at success and we came up short. What does that mean now? Are we going to run away? We’re going to live to fight another day. That’s what I am – a warrior.
“Also, before I finish, we have to give credit to Daniel. When I sign up to fight opponents, I don’t really like them in my head anymore. But now that it’s done, I take my hat off to him and say well done to him and his team. I also want to thank my team for the way they prepared me. There were a few mistakes in there, but that’s the name of the game. Fine margins can cost you at the top level.”
All in all, Joshua was in good spirits after the defeat – which was his fourth in his entire professional career. Prior to Saturday, Joshua had only lost to Andy Ruiz Jr. and twice to Oleksandr Usyk.
Joshua, who fought in front of a record crowd of 96,000 fans at Wembley Stadium, leaves with pride in his showing.
“I always hold my head high,” Joshua said. “We took a shot at success, and we came up short, unfortunately. We rolled the dice for the third time. That’s 13 world title fights, and not every one has been successful, but every one has been fine and entertaining. We’re trying to create history for British boxing, and I think we’re doing that.”
Check out these photos from the Anthony Joshua vs. Daniel Dubois weigh-ins in London.
Check out these photos from the Anthony Joshua vs. Daniel Dubois weigh-ins ahead of the boxing event taking place at Wembley Stadium in London. (Photos by Richard Pelham, Getty Images)
Check out these photos from the Anthony Johsua vs. Daniel Dubois pre-fight press conference in London.
Check out these photos from the [autotag]Anthony Joshua[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Daniel Dubois[/autotag] pre-fight press conference, which took place at Guild Hall in London, England. The event takes place Saturday at Wembley Stadium and streams on DAZN. (Photos by Mark Robinson, Matchroom Boxing)
Feb 2, 2020; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) with head coach Andy Reid against the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl LIV at Hard Rock Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
ARLINGTON, TX – APRIL 26: Saquon Barkley of Penn State poses with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell after being picked #2 overall by the New York Giants during the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft at AT&T Stadium on April 26, 2018 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)
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Pound-for-pound: Does No. 3 Oleksandr Usyk leap frog Nos. 1 and 2 Terence Crawford and Naoya Inoue to the top of the list?
Oleksandr Usyk gave the performance of a lifetime on Saturday in Saudi Arabia, rallying to defeat gigantic Tyson Fury by a split decision to become the first undisputed heavyweight champion in a quarter century.
But was it enough to catapult No. 3-ranked Usyk past Nos. 1 and 2 Terence Crawford and Naoya Inoue on the Boxing Junkie pound-for-pound list?
No.
Usyk (22-0, 14 KOs) deserves consideration for the top spot after taking down Anthony Joshua in back-to-back fights in 2021 and 2022, stopping Daniel Dubois in nine rounds in August and now handing Fury the first loss of his career.
That’s a hell of a run by any standard. And the former cruiserweight champ has done it against naturally larger men, who would have trouble competing with him if he were their size. That obviously works in his favor in the pound-for-pound debate.
So why isn’t he No. 1?
Let’s start with Crawford and Inoue. The gifted lower-weight stars don’t have quite the resume Usyk has but they’ve dominated one contender after another to climb to the top of the list and have shown no signs of weakness.
Remember: We were as amazed when Crawford demolished fellow pound-for-pounder Errol Spence Jr. and Inoue got up from a knockdown to destroy Luis Nery as we are now following Usyk’s historic victory over Fury.
And while we must keep in mind the size difference between Usyk and his heavyweight rivals, he dominated neither Joshua nor Fury and benefitted from a controversial call by the referee – a clean body shot that was ruled a low blow — against Dubois to maintain his perfect record.
Fury believes he did enough against Usyk to get the decision, which isn’t far fetched given the tight, back-and-forth war. Had it gone Fury’s way, we wouldn’t even be talking about Usyk as a potential No. 1.
None of the above is meant to denigrate Usyk’s accomplishments. He has demonstrated over the past two years that he not only is the top heavyweight at the moment but also an all-time great, which is the highest praise in boxing.
He just hasn’t done quite enough to leap frog two other future Hall of Famers, Crawford and Inoue.
Of course, we must add one thing: If Usyk fights and beats Fury again — particularly if it’s more convincing the second time — we’ll have to revisit our decision to leave him at No. 3.
What about Fury, who entered Saturday at No. 9? He drops to No. 11 — below Bam Rodriguez and Artur Beterbiev — after his disastrous performance against Francis Ngannou in October and his setback against Usyk on Saturday.
And, obviously, Fury also can change his fortunes if he can turn the tables on Usyk in a rematch.
Next pound-for-pounder up: No. 8 Gervonta Davis will face Frank Martin and No. 15 David Benavidez will take on Oleksandr Gvozdyk on the same card June 15 in Las Vegas.
Here’s what the list looks like at the moment:
BOXING JUNKIE
POUND-FOR-POUND
Terence Crawford – Scheduled to challenge 154-pound titleholder
Israil Madrimov on Aug. 3 in Los Angeles.
Naoya Inoue – No fight scheduled.
Oleksandr Usyk – No fight scheduled.
Dmitry Bivol – Fight against No. 12 Artur Beterbiev for the undisputed 175-pound championship, originally scheduled for June 1, was postponed after Beterbiev injured his knee.
Juan Francisco Estrada – Scheduled to defend his 115-pound title against No. 11 Jesse Rodriguez on June 29 in Phoenix.
Canelo Alvarez – No fight scheduled.
Jermell Charlo – No fight scheduled.
Gervonta Davis – Scheduled to defend his 135-pound title against Frank Martin on June 15 in Las Vegas.
Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez – Scheduled to face No. 5 Juan Francisco Estrada for Estrada’s 115-pound title on June 29 in Phoenix.
Artur Beterbiev – Fight against No. 4 Dmitry Bivol for the undisputed 175-pound championship, originally scheduled for June 1, was postponed after Beterbiev injured his knee.
Tyson Fury – No fight scheduled.
Errol Spence Jr. – No fight scheduled.
Vasiliy Lomachenko – No fight scheduled.
Shakur Stevenson – No fight scheduled.
David Benavidez – Scheduled to fight 175-pounder Oleksandr Gvozdyk on June 15 in Las Vegas.
Honorable mention (alphabetical order): Jermall Charlo (no fight scheduled); Roman Gonzalez (no fight scheduled); Kazuto Ioka (scheduled to face Fernando Martinez in a 115-pound title-unification bout in on July 7 in Tokyo); Teofimo Lopez (scheduled to defend his 140-pound title against Steve Claggett on June 29 in Miami); Junto Nakatani (scheduled to defend his 118-pound title against Vincent Astrolabio on July 20 in Tokyo).
Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk: 5 burning questions (and answers) going into their pay-per-view fight Saturday in Saudi Arabia.
Boxing will have an undisputed heavyweight champion on Saturday.
That’s when beltholders Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk will fight for all four major titles at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on DAZN Pay-Per-View.
The fight was scheduled for Feb. 17 but it was pushed back after Fury suffered a cut during sparring. However, the fighters are now ready to roll.
Of course, fans and pundits have many questions going into the most important heavyweight fight in a generation. Here are five of them, complete with answers.
Which Fury will show up?
A better version. Fury embarrassed himself and the sport – with some help from Francis Ngannou – the last time we saw him in the ring, on Oct. 28 in Saudi Arabia. What should’ve been an easy victory over an aging MMA star making his boxing debut turned into a near disaster, with Fury hitting the canvas in the third round and having to rally to win a split decision. If that Fury shows up on Saturday, Oleksandr Usyk will school him and become undisputed champion in a walkover. We won’t see that version of “The Gypsy King,” however. Fury evidently was ill-prepared for the Ngannou fight because he expected little resistance from his upstart opponent, who gave a spirited effort. I believe Fury will be as prepared as he can possibly be for the challenge he’ll face in the Middle East, as he has looked remarkably fit in the months leading up to the fight. Of course, we’ll see whether that’s good enough to take down one of the best technicians in the world. But he’ll be ready.
Was Usyk’s performance against Daniel Dubois a red flag?
Possibly. Those who believe that Usyk is vulnerable to body shots can point to his unusual fight against Dubois on Aug. 26 as evidence. The champion went down hard from a right to the belt line that referee Luis Pabon erroneously ruled a low blow, which gave Usyk undeserved time to recover and go on to stop Dubois in the ninth round. Of course, Usyk might’ve been able to get to his feet and continue fighting if he had to gotten to his feet within 10 seconds. And the victory is now in the books. A legitimate question arose, however: Are blows to the body the great Ukrainian’s weakness? Will his big, strong, talented opponent emphasize body work in light of what happened in the Dubois fight? If Fury does so and he can land his punches in the right spots, we’ll see whether Usyk is indeed vulnerable to that area.
Will the size difference be a significant factor?
Absolutely. A good big man beats a good little man, as the adage goes. And that would seem to apply to this fight. Usyk probably has somewhat better technical skills than Fury but the Englishman isn’t far behind, meaning he’d be competitive if they were the same size. And they’re anything but. Fury is 6-foot-9 and probably will be 260-plus pounds when he steps into the ring on Saturday. Usyk is 6-3 and weighed around 221 for his last three fights, the result of bulking up following his days as the 200-pound champion. He’s about as big as he can get and still have the ability to move effectively, which leaves him at a significant disadvantage. His supporters will point to his victories over Anthony Joshua as evidence that he can handle a big opponent, which makes sense. However, Joshua (6-6, 250-plus) isn’t quite as big as Fury. Plus, the second fight seemed to be more taxing for Usyk physically than the fi. Usyk has a big mountain to climb.
How significant is this matchup?
Huge. First, barring unforeseen circumstances, boxing will have its first undisputed heavyweight champion since Lennox Lewis in the early 2000s. Also, the fact they are the two best heavyweights of the post-Klitschko era and unbeaten adds to the importance of the matchup. It’s not Muhammad Ali vs. Joe Frazier I – it’s unlikely that any fight will approach the magnitude of that historic bout – but it doesn’t get bigger than Fury-Usyk by today’s standards. And it seems likely that the fight on Saturday will be only the first installment in what could be a two- or three-part series, perhaps akin to the unforgettable meetings between the undersized Evander Holyfield (another former cruiserweight champ) and Riddick Bowe in 1990s. Yes, this is a significant moment in boxing.
Who’s going to win?
Fury. I hesitated to type those four letters. I keep thinking about his miserable performance against Ngannou, who entered their fight with next to no boxing experience and almost won. Observers were justified in asking whether the 35-year-old titleholder had begun to decline after more than 15 years as a professional boxer. Perhaps he has. However, I’m going with my gut here. I hadn’t seen signs of slippage in previous fights. I’m convinced that Fury believed he could beat Ngannou just by showing up, which is no way to approach any fight. I think he’s ready physically and mentally for the challenge he’ll face on Saturday. Usyk, a truly gifted boxer, will give his rival some problems but Fury’s combination of ability, size and superior physical strength will be more than enough for the Mancunian to wear Usyk down and pull away in the later rounds to win a clear decision or score a late knockout. Fury UD.
Teddy Atlas reacts to Francis Ngannou’s KO loss to Anthony Joshua in second pro boxing fight.
[autotag]Teddy Atlas[/autotag] believes [autotag]Anthony Joshua[/autotag] brought the conversation around [autotag]Francis Ngannou[/autotag] back to reality.
Ngannou, a former UFC heavyweight champion, made plenty of waves with his jump into the boxing world after he was able to go the distance in a very competitive fight against WBC champion Tyson Fury back in October. So much, that even the WBC ended up ranking Ngannou in the top 10 of their rankings with the one fight.
Well, in his second professional boxing match last Friday, Ngannou was knocked out by Joshua in the second round of their contest. It was a bad loss for Ngannou, who was dropped twice before getting viciously stopped. Atlas believes the result exposed the true nature of Ngannou.
“He exposed an amateur, because he did in reality,” Atlas said on his YouTube channel. “I know the great performance against Fury, I explained that, it was great, but that was different. Now he had to react. I even think Ngannou’s confidence hurt him because he thought he could be more aggressive, and he was ready to be more aggressive. He was right in front of him. I thought that hurt him this time because he wasn’t that guy yet.
“He was still an amateur, and we forgot that because of his brilliance performance against Fury. … (Joshua) reminded us he was an amateur, he’s not ready for prime time because he did what a top guy should do. You exposed him. You exposed the things he wasn’t yet.”
So how could an “amateur” fight and almost beat the WBC heavyweight champion? Atlas gives Ngannou credit for his showing against Fury back in October, but he does think a perfect combination of factors led to Ngannou over-performing.
“Styles makes fights,” Atlas said. “Fury’s style was completely different from Joshua’s, that’s No. 1. It does influence fights. No. 2. There was something missing that was there the first time, that helped Ngannou when he fought Fury. That something is the element of surprise. That’s a big something, not a little something. Fury was ready physically, he was, I’m making no excuses. Tremendous job by Ngannou, but Fury wasn’t ready mentally.
“You couldn’t be. It’s almost not human to have really taken him seriously, where every fiber of your body and mind would be ready for what was coming. It was his first pro fight, and you’re the champion of the world.”
Where does Francis Ngannou go after a brutal knockout loss to Anthony Joshua in the boxing ring? Our “Spinning Back Clique” discusses.
Things did not go well for [autotag]Francis Ngannou[/autotag] in his second boxing appearance.
Anthony Joshua dispatched the former UFC heavyweight champ quickly and easily in their big showdown in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Joshua needed less than two rounds to score three knockdowns, including the final right hand that put Ngannou out cold on the canvas.
After what Ngannou won a scorecard in a split decision against Tyson Fury, the knockout result seemed a bit shocking to some. But where does Ngannou go from here?
Is it time for Ngannou to return to the MMA cage, where he has his debut under the PFL banner and an opponent in Renan Ferreria waiting? Should he take one more boxing bout against another well-known name?
That was a topic of discussion in this week’s “Spinning Back Clique” with Brian “Goze” Garcia, Nolan King, guest panelist “Big” John McCarthy, and host “Gorgeous” George Garcia.
Watch the video segment above, or watch this week’s complete episode of “Spinning Back Clique” below.
Demetrious Johnson has made a bold claim in regards to Anthony Joshua’s chances vs. Francis Ngannou in MMA.
[autotag]Demetrious Johnson[/autotag] has made a bold claim in regards to [autotag]Anthony Joshua[/autotag]’s chances vs. [autotag]Francis Ngannou[/autotag] in MMA.
Ngannou (0-2) was knocked out cold in Round 2 of his boxing match against Joshua (28-3) Friday in the featured bout of Knockout Chaos at Kingdom Arena in Saudi Arabia.
Although he initially picked Ngannou to win, Johnson went as far as saying Joshua would get the best of the former UFC heavyweight champion in an MMA fight.
“Does Anthony Joshua beat Francis Ngannou in an MMA fight? I think he does,” Johnson said on his YouTube channel. “It would just be another striking match. AJ understands his distance. He understands the void. He has better hands than Francis, and he can make Francis even whiff and miss again. Unless Francis is going to change his tactic and go clinch him and wrestle him, (Joshua would win). But AJ is very athletic. He is smaller, he’s more limber. I think he’d be able to stuff the shot and be able to give it to Francis Ngannou.”
Johnson thinks if MMA fighters are going to continue to crossover to boxing, they need an adequate amount of time to prep.
“I’m not saying Francis has not taken it seriously,” Johnson said. “If I was to take a boxing match, I will probably spend eight months to a year preparing myself for the boxing match. Reason why is because the punches come faster. The movement is different. There’s only one weapon, and you only can use one weapon, right? I can’t use my kicks. I can’t use my knees. I can’t use my elbows. I can’t use my wrestling. How am I going to cross the void when I can’t use all the weapons I’ve been using for the last 18 years?
“Another thing that could have been Francis’ downfall was he had that boxing match with Tyson Fury. So Anthony Joshua got an opportunity to see Francis fight boxing. What he took from the boxing match on Francis vs. Tyson? He probably took, ‘OK, Francis doesn’t move his head. He doesn’t really move his head. He’s not very light on his feet,’ where Tyson Fury, he’s kind of light on his feet and Tyson’s trying to avoid the fight. This time, Anthony Joshua got right to work right off the bat, and that’s usually not a good sign if the other opponent doesn’t respond.”
Weekend Review: Anthony Joshua embarrassed Francis Ngannou AND Tyson Fury on Friday in Saudi Arabia.
A critical look at the past week in boxing
BIGGEST WINNER AND LOSER
Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury
Tyson Fury must’ve have been embarrassed on Friday night.
Anthony Joshua did what his countryman should’ve done when Fury fought Francis Ngannou in October, which was to demonstrate that an MMA fighter without boxing experience has no business in the ring with a top heavyweight.
Fury survived a knockdown to eke out a pathetic split decision victory in Saudi Arabia. Joshua annihilated Ngannou in the same country, dropping the Cameroonian three times and stopping him in the second round to build on his momentum and restore some honor to the sport.
The difference between Fury and Joshua in their respective fights with Ngannou?
Not complicated: Fury wasn’t professional, Joshua was.
Fury wasn’t prepared – mentally or physically, it seemed — when he stepped into the ring to face Ngannou, who had some experience in the gym early in his combat sports career but was making his professional boxing debut.
The WBC titleholder obviously thought he could defeat Ngannou just by showing up, a notion shared by many. That’s not how it’s done, however. Not even against a rookie.
Fury rallied from a third-round knockdown to outpoint Ngannou, a decision that wasn’t controversial if you understand how scoring works. However, the competitive nature of the bout was mortifying for both Fury and boxing.
Joshua clearly prepared for his meeting with Ngannou as he would any big fight. When he stepped through the ropes, he was at his best. And the former two-time champion’s best was far too good for Ngannou.
Many of those who care about boxing probably had the same thought after they celebrated the slaughter: Fury (34-0-1, 24 KOs) should’ve done exactly the same thing against Ngannou.
The fact he didn’t, the fact he struggled merely to have his hand raised against a newbie is a blot on his resume. It also changed my perception of him. I had predicted that he would beat the crafty, but much smaller Oleksandr Usyk handily when they meet for the undisputed championship on May 18, also in Saudi Arabia
Now I’m not so sure. Now I see it as a 50-50 fight, which shouldn’t be the case given Fury’s ability and massive size advantage.
Of course, the blessing for Fury is that he has a golden opportunity to redeem himself immediately, as a victory over Usyk would do. We’ll see which Fury shows up: the wonderfully athletic, skillful behemoth of the past or the disappointment who fell flat against Ngannou.
Meanwhile, Joshua (28-3, 25 KOs) is on a tear. He’s now 4-0 since his back-to-back setbacks against Usyk in 2021 and 2022 — including consecutive knockouts of Robert Helenius, Otto Wallin and now Ngannou — and bursting with confidence.
I and many others thought Joshua was in the last throes of his elite career after the Usyk losses. Now I have had to rethink that notion, too. The way he has performed of late has me convinced that the 34-year-old once again has the tools to beat anyone in the game.
RABBIT PUNCHES
I don’t mean to be too hard on Ngannou. He deserves credit for his performance against Fury. He, unlike Fury, trained to be at his best and that paid off in the form of a strong performance. However, Joshua proved that a fighter with limited boxing skills and experience can only accomplish so much. I hope Ngannou doesn’t go away, however. I’d like to see how he does against second-tier heavyweights – if he’s willing to fight them — and whether he has another surprise in him. … Joseph Parker (35-3, 23 KOs) is another fighter who proved me wrong. I thought the Kiwi was finished after he had two tough fights against Derek Chisora in 2021 and was knocked out by Joe Joyce in September 2022. The 32-year-old former beltholder has won five consecutive fights since the setback, including decisions over Deontay Wilder in December and Zhilei Zhang on the Joshua-Ngannou undercard in his last two fights to reestablish himself as a genuine title contender. He nearly shutout Wilder and deserved better than a majority decision over Zhang, who was coming off back-to-back knockouts of Joyce. The fact Parker had to overcome two knockouts to beat his Chinese counterpart only added to the significance of the victory. Fans love a fighter who overcomes adversity to have his or her hand raised. Make no mistake: Parker is back. …
Can Zhang (26-2-1, 21 KOs) bounce back in his 40s? He established himself as a heavyweight to be reckoned with by stopping Joyce twice. However, his performance on Friday was a significant step backward. He didn’t show much against a good, experienced boxer aside from the two punches that put Parker down. I imagine he won’t walk away now, though. The knockouts against Joyce are still fresh in his mind. And he did lose a competitive decision to Parker. … I get why people were aghast over the announcement that Jake Paul will face 57-year-old Mike Tyson in what evidently will be an exhibition July 20 at AT&T Stadium near Dallas. It has freak show written all over it. At the same time, it makes perfect sense from a business standpoint. Paul and Tyson stand to make untold millions for dancing around the ring for a few rounds because many people worldwide will find value in the event. How many of us, if we had their abilities, wouldn’t do the same thing? Be honest.
Weekend Review: Anthony Joshua embarrassed Francis Ngannou AND Tyson Fury on Friday in Saudi Arabia.
A critical look at the past week in boxing
BIGGEST WINNER AND LOSER
Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury
Tyson Fury must’ve have been embarrassed on Friday night.
Anthony Joshua did what his countryman should’ve done when Fury fought Francis Ngannou in October, which was to demonstrate that an MMA fighter without boxing experience has no business in the ring with a top heavyweight.
Fury survived a knockdown to eke out a pathetic split decision victory in Saudi Arabia. Joshua annihilated Ngannou in the same country, dropping the Cameroonian three times and stopping him in the second round to build on his momentum and restore some honor to the sport.
The difference between Fury and Joshua in their respective fights with Ngannou?
Not complicated: Fury wasn’t professional, Joshua was.
Fury wasn’t prepared – mentally or physically, it seemed — when he stepped into the ring to face Ngannou, who had some experience in the gym early in his combat sports career but was making his professional boxing debut.
The WBC titleholder obviously thought he could defeat Ngannou just by showing up, a notion shared by many. That’s not how it’s done, however. Not even against a rookie.
Fury rallied from a third-round knockdown to outpoint Ngannou, a decision that wasn’t controversial if you understand how scoring works. However, the competitive nature of the bout was mortifying for both Fury and boxing.
Joshua clearly prepared for his meeting with Ngannou as he would any big fight. When he stepped through the ropes, he was at his best. And the former two-time champion’s best was far too good for Ngannou.
Many of those who care about boxing probably had the same thought after they celebrated the slaughter: Fury (34-0-1, 24 KOs) should’ve done exactly the same thing against Ngannou.
The fact he didn’t, the fact he struggled merely to have his hand raised against a newbie is a blot on his resume. It also changed my perception of him. I had predicted that he would beat the crafty, but much smaller Oleksandr Usyk handily when they meet for the undisputed championship on May 18, also in Saudi Arabia
Now I’m not so sure. Now I see it as a 50-50 fight, which shouldn’t be the case given Fury’s ability and massive size advantage.
Of course, the blessing for Fury is that he has a golden opportunity to redeem himself immediately, as a victory over Usyk would do. We’ll see which Fury shows up: the wonderfully athletic, skillful behemoth of the past or the disappointment who fell flat against Ngannou.
Meanwhile, Joshua (28-3, 25 KOs) is on a tear. He’s now 4-0 since his back-to-back setbacks against Usyk in 2021 and 2022 — including consecutive knockouts of Robert Helenius, Otto Wallin and now Ngannou — and bursting with confidence.
I and many others thought Joshua was in the last throes of his elite career after the Usyk losses. Now I have had to rethink that notion, too. The way he has performed of late has me convinced that the 34-year-old once again has the tools to beat anyone in the game.
RABBIT PUNCHES
I don’t mean to be too hard on Ngannou. He deserves credit for his performance against Fury. He, unlike Fury, trained to be at his best and that paid off in the form of a strong performance. However, Joshua proved that a fighter with limited boxing skills and experience can only accomplish so much. I hope Ngannou doesn’t go away, however. I’d like to see how he does against second-tier heavyweights – if he’s willing to fight them — and whether he has another surprise in him. … Joseph Parker (35-3, 23 KOs) is another fighter who proved me wrong. I thought the Kiwi was finished after he had two tough fights against Derek Chisora in 2021 and was knocked out by Joe Joyce in September 2022. The 32-year-old former beltholder has won five consecutive fights since the setback, including decisions over Deontay Wilder in December and Zhilei Zhang on the Joshua-Ngannou undercard in his last two fights to reestablish himself as a genuine title contender. He nearly shutout Wilder and deserved better than a majority decision over Zhang, who was coming off back-to-back knockouts of Joyce. The fact Parker had to overcome two knockouts to beat his Chinese counterpart only added to the significance of the victory. Fans love a fighter who overcomes adversity to have his or her hand raised. Make no mistake: Parker is back. …
Can Zhang (26-2-1, 21 KOs) bounce back in his 40s? He established himself as a heavyweight to be reckoned with by stopping Joyce twice. However, his performance on Friday was a significant step backward. He didn’t show much against a good, experienced boxer aside from the two punches that put Parker down. I imagine he won’t walk away now, though. The knockouts against Joyce are still fresh in his mind. And he did lose a competitive decision to Parker. … I get why people were aghast over the announcement that Jake Paul will face 57-year-old Mike Tyson in what evidently will be an exhibition July 20 at AT&T Stadium near Dallas. It has freak show written all over it. At the same time, it makes perfect sense from a business standpoint. Paul and Tyson stand to make untold millions for dancing around the ring for a few rounds because many people worldwide will find value in the event. How many of us, if we had their abilities, wouldn’t do the same thing? Be honest.
