Anthony Joshua Receives Support From Sparring Partners

Anthony Joshua is seeded against Francis Ngannou (Instagram/@anthonyjoshua).

JAKARTA - Anthony Joshua will face Francis Ngannou on March 8, 2024, in Saudi Arabia. Ahead of the fight, tension has risen.

Joshua and Ngannou met at an event belonging to DANZ some time ago. The two were involved in a psywar.

The incident began when Ngannou boasted that Joshua would not be able to rise if he knocked him down. The former UFC champion thinks Joshua is not as strong as Tyson Fury.

As is known, Ngannou made his professional boxing debut in the world against Tyson Fury in October 2023.

In that duel, he had brought down Fury. However, Fury was able to get up and finish all the rounds. In fact, Fury won in a separate decision that was controversial.

Ngannou's comments clearly made Joshua hot. He didn't accept being labeled worse than Fury.

The boxer from Great Britain emphasized that bringing down Fury was not something to be proud of.

After that, support even flowed to Joshua. Boxing fans corner Ngannou who can only boast. Favorites lead to Joshua because he seems to be preparing himself seriously.

Apart from boxing fans, great support also flows from Joshua's Spain partner, David Prince. He believes Ngannou will not survive in the ring.

"I think Joshua will really go through it in a boxing match."

"I think it's going to be bigger than what Fury did and got people to talk more about Joshua," Prince told iFL TV.

Price retired in 2021, two years after the defeat to Derek Chisora.

In 2016, he helped Joshua as a combat opponent. At that time, the 34-year-old boxer was defending the IBF title for the second time.

Price once revealed that he had brought Joshua down in the sparring session before the duel to defend his IBF title. Joshua was an amateur boxer at the time and never denied Price's claims.

"Yes, he dropped me during the sparing. I kept practicing and that's why I'm here now."

"In a sense, you should see these things as a hidden blessing. In boxing, many people fall, get injured, and then continue and do great things," Joshua told Sky Sports in 2016.

Prince has forged Joshua well until now. Anthony Joshua has won the world heavyweight unification for WBA, IBF, and WBO twice between 2016 and 2021.