ANTHONY JOSHUA will be back in the ring later this year against the surprise package of 2023 – Francis Ngannou.
The former two-time unified heavyweight champion will continue his career rebuild with a lucrative Saudi showdown with the MMA man-mountain.
Promoter Eddie Hearn announced the shock deal early on Saturday morning but stopped short of revealing the date for the fight.
SunSport, however, understands the Riyadh rumble has been earmarked for March 9 – the date initially reserved for AJ’s now dead-in-the-water clash with Deontay Wilder.
Former UFC heavyweight champion Ngannou shocked the world last October with a virtuoso display against WBC heavyweight champ Tyson Fury, who he dropped in the third round of their ‘Battle of the Baddest’.
The combat sports world is abuzz with predictions for The Predator’s shock opponent for his ring return.
So SunSport thought it’d only be right to break down all the pre-fight numbers ahead of their March meeting.
Father Time is on the side of beloved Brit Joshua in his clash with the Cameroonian clubber.
Joshua turned 34 last October, while Ngannou celebrated his 37th birthday a month before he locked horns with Fury last October.
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ANTHONY JOSHUA VS FRANCIS NGANNOU: ALL THE DETAILS YOU NEED AHEAD OF HUGE CROSSOVER BOUT
Both men are absolute mountains, there’s no doubt about that.
But AJ – who went 3-0 last year with wins over Jermaine Franklin, Robert Helenius and Otto Wallin – is the taller of the musclebound duo.
The Watford warrior stands at 6’6 in comparison to Ngannou’s 6’4 stature.
Ngannou is, however, the heavier of the pair having tipped the scales at 19 stone four pounds for his clash with Fury.
Joshua, meanwhile, weighed in nearly two stone lighter than Ngannou for his clash with Wallin – tipping the scales at 17 stone 9 pounds.
The duo’s respective reaches are virtually identical, with Ngannou edging out the battle with 83-inch-extending arms in comparison to Joshua’s 82-inch reach.
Joshua has more career fights to his name than Ngannou, taking to the ring 30 times as a professional.
AJ has registered a whopping 24 stoppages and only tasted defeat three times, two of which came at the hands of Oleksandr Usyk.
Ngannou has a combined record of 21 fights in boxing and MMA and has picked up 12 knockouts in his 17 wins.
He has four defeats to his name, the last of which was controversially inflicted on him by Fury.
