Anthony Joshua has claimed that he is ready to face Francis Ngannou, claiming that the former UFC champion performed well against current WBC champion Tyson Fury.
Joshua is scheduled to fight Ngannou on Friday, March 8, 2024.
Remember how Ngannou stunned the world when he defeated Fury in the third round last October. However, he lost the fight by a split decision.
Speaking ahead of his bout with Ngannou, Joshua insists: “I just feel to myself I will always be here and ready to fight any time,” the 34-year-old told Sky Sports.
“He [Ngannou] had a good outing as well against Tyson Fury who is the current WBC champion. So I think it will be good for me to see where I’m at,” he said.
Throughout his career though Joshua has taken on a sequence of elite opponents, from Wladimir Klitschko to Oleksandr Usyk, with Joseph Parker, Alexander Povetkin and many more in between. But glaring omissions from Joshua’s CV are American puncher Deontay Wilder and British rival Tyson Fury.
Joshua however points out that even though bouts with those opponents never came to fruition, for his part he has previously agreed to fight both men.
Talks for a fight with Tyson Fury have stalled and collapsed in the past, while Joshua had inked a deal to fight Wilder this year, only for the American to suffer a surprise upset loss to Joseph Parker and nix the arrangement.