Anthony Joshua knocked Francis Ngannou down for the first time in his career on Friday night and finished the former UFC heavyweight champion off in the second round on their highly-anticipated fight in Saudi Arabia.
Many fans had thought the fight was going to be too close to call following Ngannou’s debut in the sport – having gone the distance with world champion Tyson Fury.
However, the Brit dominated the main event, flooring his opponent in the first and second round before delivering a savage KO that left the MMA star requiring oxygen. It is now believed Joshua will take on the winner of Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk following the undisputed title fight on May 18 and the rematch which has been inserted into their contracts.
When asked who he would back to come out on top if Joshua and Fury ever crossed paths following his defeat on Friday night, Ngannou said: ‘I don’t know, I would give it to AJ for right now.’
So, with the above in mind, Mail Sport have rounded up the rest of AJ and Fury’s shared opponents – Kevin Johnson, Dillian Whyte, Otto Wallin and Wladimir Klitschko – to see who they would back in the Battle of Britain clash.
Anthony Joshua knocked Francis Ngannou down for the first time in his career in Saudi Arabia on Friday night and finished the former UFC heavyweight champion off in the second round
Several supporters had thought the fight was going to be too close to call following Ngannou’s debut in the sport – having gone the distance with world champion Tyson Fury in October
Mail Sport have rounded AJ and Fury’s shared opponents to see who they would back in a fight
KEVIN JOHNSON
Kevin Johnson has taken on the likes of Kubrat Pulev, Dereck Chisora, Manuel Charr, Christian Hammer and Andy Ruiz throughout his career.
But, the two main names that standout on Johnson’s resume are Joshua and Fury, losing to AJ in 2015 and the Gypsy King in 2012.
When asked to compare the pair and give his prediction regarding a potential showdown between them, Johnson told iFL TV, Johnson said: ‘Tyson Fury has one thing that many people can’t beat.
‘It’s not skill, Anthony Joshua is definitely the more skilful fighter, but Tyson Fury is so long and in a safety zone with that reach and movement, he made Wladimir Klitschko look like an amateur.
‘He didn’t do that because he has more skill, everybody knows that Klitschko would knock him out, but you’ve got to get past that reach. It’s like giving somebody a sniper rifle and asking somebody 20 yards away to run up on him.’
The Gypsy King (pictured on the left) took on Kevin Johnson (pictured on the right) in a WBC Heavyweight Title Eliminator Contest at the Odyssey Arena in Belfast, Northern Ireland
Meanwhile, Joshua and Johnson went toe-to-toe at the O2 Arena in May 2015 (pictured above)
DILLIAN WHYTE
Dillian Whyte has been cleared to return to the ring this weekend after an ‘adverse analytical finding’ was found in his pre-fight drugs test ahead of his rematch with Joshua last August.
It remains to be seen if Whyte will get the rematch with AJ in the future – having lost to Joshua in their only professional fight despite beating him in the amateurs.
The Body Snatcher will be eager to face AJ for a second time in the pro ranks – having been knocked out in emphatic fashion with a brutal right uppercut in the seventh of their bout.
Whyte also fought Fury in April 2022 at Wembley. He was looking to dethrone the Gypsy King and take his WBC belt. However, he failed to trouble Fury – who won round after round before stopping him in the sixth.
The Body Snatcher will be eager to face AJ for a second time in the pro ranks – having been knocked out in emphatic fashion with a brutal right uppercut in the seventh of their first bout
When discussing who would win between AJ and Fury in the past, Whyte said: ‘This is heavyweight boxing, man. Who would’ve said Hasim Rahman or Oliver McCall would have knocked out Lennox Lewis? It’s heavyweight boxing.
‘Wladimir Klitschko lost to Ross Puritty, no-one even knows that guy. There’s a case for both guys winning this fight, I think. Both guys showed a lot of versatility in their fights.
‘[Joshua’s] two fights with Ruiz and [Fury’s] two fights with Wilder – they’re the same guys but they’re different styles and different ways of getting the victory.
‘Joshua had a loss against [Andy] Ruiz, Fury had a draw against [Deontay] Wilder. Then Fury came off the back foot, was aggressive and knocked Wilder out. And Joshua came off the front foot, got on the back foot and got a points decision against Andy Ruiz.
‘You see what I’m saying? It’s hard, only true fans of each guy will say, ‘This guy’s gonna win.’ It’s very hard, I don’t think no boxing purist would say, ‘This guys gonna win because of this.’
Whyte also fought Fury in April 2022 at Wembley. He was looking to dethrone the Gypsy King and take his WBC belt. However, he failed to trouble Fury – who stopped Whyte in the sixth
WLADIMIR KLITSCHKO
Fury pulled off one of the great boxing upsets by outpointing Wladimir Klitschko to become heavyweight champion of the world in November 2015.
Not many gave the Gypsy King much of a chance of toppling the Ukrainian, but Fury got inside Klitschko’s head with his pre-fight antics and then bewildered him between the ropes.
Seventeen months later, Klitschko faced Joshua in front of 90,000 fans at Wembley. It was tough contest, with both men hitting the canvas during the fight. However, it was AJ who emerged victorious.
Joshua found a second wind heading into the final two rounds of the fight and delivered the decisive blow in the 11th round to knock Klitschko down twice and force the referee to jump in.
But, who is Klitschko backing when it comes to AJ vs Fury?
‘Hands down Joshua’, Klitschko told Sky Sports. He is getting to be the complete fighter. Technically, size-wise, weight-wise, power-wise. And he is a good learner. The other guy [Fury], like a fart in the wind it is there and it is gone.
Joshua delivered the decisive blow in the 11th round to knock Wladimir Klitschko down in 2017
Fury pulled off one of the great boxing upsets by triumphing over Klitschko in November 2015
‘In the history of boxing there are a lot of examples of this kind of guy. They can be successful for a time but are not disciplined enough to continue to be successful.
‘I wish Tyson well but I think there is a lack of discipline there, and discipline is more important than motivation. Drawing from my experience I would say it is going to be very difficult for Tyson because there’s that lack of discipline.’
OTTO WALLIN
Otto Wallin took on Fury in September 2019. He was supposed to be a stop-gap for the Gypsy King as he awaited a rematch with Deontay Wilder. However, it ended up being a hairy moment for the Gypsy King.
Wallin landed cleanly on Fury, opening up a giant gash just above his right eye that later required 47 stitches. However, Fury battled on and grounded out a hard-earned points decision.
Meanwhile, AJ dismantled Wallin on the December 23, Day of Reckoning card in Saudi Arabia last year. Joshua went straight on to the front foot and systematically beat Wallin up until his corner threw in the towel after five rounds.
Speaking to Boxing News about the potential fight between AJ and Fury, Wallin said: ‘Well, I would say that this fight with Joshua was a lot tougher than the fight I had with Fury.
AJ dismantled Wallin on the December 23, Day of Reckoning card in Saudi Arabia last year. Joshua went straight on to the front foot and beat Wallin up until his corner threw in the towel
Otto Wallin took on Fury in September 2019. He was supposed to be a stop-gap for the Gypsy King as he awaited a rematch with Deontay Wilder. However, it ended up being a hairy moment
‘It’s hard to say [what would happen in a fight between Fury and Joshua]. I think that Fury’s a very good fighter. Can probably pick it up from what he was doing in his last fight. It’s a decent fight. We’ll see what happens with Joshua now.
‘He might be on to something really good with Ben Davison, and Ben obviously knows Tyson. I don’t know. There’s a lot of variables. I always said that Fury would win that fight, but now just being in with Joshua, I feel a little bit different. It’s hard to go against Tyson I think. But, I don’t know, it’s changed my mind a bit after this fight.’