A destructive force found a way to dent an immovable object.

Anthony Joshua found a way to Francis Ngannou’s perceived impenetrable chin and delivered an instant Knockout of the Year candidate. Ngannou was floored three times, the latter which produced an immediate ending at 2:38 of round two Friday evening from Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Ngannou (0-2 as a boxer; 17-3 in mixed martial arts) rode a massive wave of momentum following his remarkable pro debut after his crossover from UFC where he was the heavyweight champion. He nearly scored a gargantuan upset of WBC heavyweight champ Tyson Fury (34-0-1, 24 KOs), No. 1 at HVY, last October 28. Fury was floored in the third round but rallied back to claim a split decision victory at the start of Riyadh Season. The win remained a stain on his resume, unbefitting a two-time heavyweight champion versus boxing debutant.

Joshua (28-3, 25 knockouts), No. 2 at HVY and a former two-time unified titlist, restored order in the boxing world. True to career form, he took it all in stride.

“It is what it is,” Joshua told DAZN’s Ade Oladipo after his fourth consecutive victory, all within the past 49 weeks.

The heavily hyped ‘Knockout Chaos’ event was met with a no-nonsense approach by Joshua, who was all business throughout fight week.

The 34-year-old contender from Watford, England kept on his game face and took care of business once the bell sounded. A once-perceived competitive matchup didn’t take long to delve into the novelty fight it was once believed to be prior to last October.

Ngannou put his best foot forward in the opening round. Joshua, who won Gold in the 2012 London Olympics, was cautious to a point, as he wisely used movement to get Ngannou into his desired punching position.

He found it in the form of a right hand to floor Ngannou in the opening round. Ngannou, who was never stopped in MMA, beat the count but seemed unclear how to react in the rare position of physical adversity.

Joshua wouldn’t give him a chance to solve that riddle.

Another right hand by Joshua produced the bout’s second knockdown midway through round two. The clean shot left Ngannou with a look of concern as he once again rose to his feet. This time, however, he had to have sensed the end was near.

Joshua didn’t at all play with his food. A booming right hand seconds later caused Ngannou to tip back as his leg folded underneath him. Referee Ricky Gonzalez didn’t waste any time to stop the contest and immediately tend to the fallen 37-year-old.

Francis Ngannou is knocked down for the third and final time as referee Ricky Gonzalez stops the fight. (Photo by Richard Pelham/Getty Images)

There was no need for a victory lap from the night’s big winner.

“You have to remember, [Ngannou’s] two fights in,” Joshua noted of Ngannou’s limited boxing experience. “He’s fought the best. He’s keen to go a long way if he stays dedicated about this.”

Dedication has been the key to Joshua’s remarkable resurgence towards the top of a heavyweight division he once ruled.

“It only takes one shot in the heavyweight division,” noted Joshua, who brushed aside a question of whether he was at his peak. “If that was me (who was knocked out), you would all be saying that I should retire.

“For me, I don’t know if I’m coming into my peak. I’m just pushing day-by-day. Wherever it will take me, I don’t know.”

Joshua won his first major title in his 16th pro fight. Three of the four major heavyweight titles were in his possession through just 21 contests. A March 2018 unification win over then-unbeaten WBO titlist Joseph Parker (35-3, 23 KOs) left Joshua just one belt shy of becoming the first undisputed heavyweight champion of the 21st century.

That dream was nearly derailed after a disastrous U.S. debut. Joshua was knocked out in the seventh round of a June 2019 title defense versus Andy Ruiz at Madison Square Garden in New York City. He exacted revenge six months later at a makeshift stadium in Diriyah, his first of four career fights in Saudi Arabia.

Joshua made just one successful defense of his second title reign before he lost the IBF/WBA/WBO titles to Oleksandr Usyk (21-0, 14 KOs). Their Sept. 2021 meeting at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in North London saw Joshua suffer his lone career defeat on British soil.

Ukraine’s Usyk repeated the feat eleven months later in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. A split decision victory saw Usyk become The Ring heavyweight champion. He defended the crown in a ninth-round knockout of Daniel Dubois (20-2, 19 KOs) last August 26 in Wroclaw, Poland.

Four wins have now followed. He outpointed Jermaine Franklin over 12 rounds last April 1 at London’s The O2. The same arena housed his seventh-round knockout of Robert Helenius, a late replacement for Dillian Whyte last August 12. Joshua then returned to Saudi Arabia for a fifth-round stoppage of Otto Wallin last December 23 in Riyadh.

The last two wins came under the tutelage of Ben Davison and his training team after the previous two under 2022 Trainer of the Year Derrick James. His stoppage of Wallin topped a pay-per-view event designed to have Joshua meet Deontay Wilder (43-3-1, 42 KOs), No. 9 at HVY. Those plans were decimated when Wilder, a former WBC heavyweight titlist, was soundly outpointed by Parker in the event’s co-feature.

Plans for Joshua-Ngannou then surfaced as event organizers moved to fully unify the heavyweight division.

The undisputed heavyweight championship should have been decided long before Friday. Usyk and Fury were due to meet on February 17 to crown the first fully unified king in 25 years. Fury suffered a cut during sparring just two weeks out to postpone their anticipated clash.

Joshua will patiently wait out the winner, even of a potential two-fight series. For now, he wants to do his best to live in the moment.

“I’m just here, making the most of it.” said Joshua. “Imagine in five years, I’m not going to be fighting anymore. It’s all going to be said and done. It’s just going to be a memory and I’m trying to make the most of it.”

That journey will require Joshua to maintain the same level of discipline that has catapulted him back into the top three of boxing’s most storied division.

“I’m just here to fight. I want to go back to my cage and lock myself away,” Joshua insisted. “Then I’m gonna be out when it’s time to fight again. Whatever they (Matchroom Boxing, 258 MGT and Davison) want me to do, I’m down for it.”

Naturally, it would have to be versus the Fury-Usyk winner, right?

“Yes it is,” Joshua confirmed.

Jake Donovan a senior writer for The Ring and vice president of the Boxing Writers Association of America.
Follow @JakeNDaBox

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