Anthony Joshua vs. Francis Ngannou •

I gotta be real here. Ngannou is not the greatest technical boxer. But boy the man is made of granite. Many people- like Fury before us; underestimate the task at hand for Joshua.

There is a very good chance we will see Joshua laugh uncomfortably and grin while he gets dropped a couple of times, in a fashion like the Ruiz 1 fight.

To put it bluntly: anytime someone puts it strong on him, he is all show no dough. He will get sparked out before round 10.

 

I think we get some Shattered Glass tomorrow.

 

You mean if they were to have a rematch? Yes, I would cheer Ngannou because I felt he got robbed the first time round. And Fury is a cancer on boxing, so the sooner he's out of the sport the better. Nothing hypocritical about that at all.

 

Ngannou is slow and he keeps his hands too low. It worked against feather-fisted Fury but after he eats a couple of Joshua right hands, he's going to realize he was fortunate to be in with Fury before.

 

And while Tim Sylvia was a former Champion, he was on 2 loss streak and was done at UFC.
Mercer also lost to Remy Bonjasky and Musashi in Kickboxing, but that is irrelevant.
And i agree MMA fans(mostly UFC ones) are toxic ***, and especially when it comes to street fighting and they think no one can beat MMA guy, which is a complete bollocks.
But Fury and AJ are currently the top 3 best and biggest HW star.
And if Ngannou beat AJ, it will be terrible look for Boxing.

 

I'm glad I check the schedule for this fight. Didn't think it would be on a Friday in a muslim country.

 

you’re pulling off examples from like 20 years ago. lots of examples of boxers getting wrecked more than the other way around.

The arrogance of some of you when even wrestlers need to train and learn bjj but boxing is all you need apparently

 

All week, the weigh in, the press conference Joshua has looked terrified. Could be curtains for him this time tomorrow.

 

Look at KSW a few boxers have been beating MMA fighters in there lately.

 

That's the way I'm seeing it (if Joshua can show some heart, that is)..

 

At the weigh in AJ appeared more steely tight while Francis, without seeming complacent, was that much more relaxed.

Nothing to read into really, that’s just they’re own way for each man in terms of the frame of mind and mental focus that best suits them.

Anecdotally, less experienced and/or less favoured fighters tend to be struck off more completely on paper than what actually happens in real fights.

There’s actually a lot of pressure on the dedicated and more experienced boxing guy - more to lose than his counterpart even if the boxer does it tough without actually losing.

Francis is acting like he’s in a no lose situation with ONLY the potential to win big - even if he himself lost a decision while posting a competitive performance.

Like AJ, Ngannou has done the work in the gym - where fights are actually won or lost in terms of all important preparation and strategising, as they say.

With that, knowing he has properly prepared and will do his best, Francis has a semi “come what may attitude” -

Does Francis usually talk this much?

Lol, he is very well expressed and makes fundamental sense in all he says.

His confidence in combination with him being realistic, couldn’t be any better.

Joshua is huge but at the short end of a 20 lb weight pull. That is crazy.

At this moment. I like them both.

May the best man win but I think AJ will be naturally leery during the opening rounds - and Francis may jump early to advantage himself of that hesitancy.

If the rounds roll by, Francis’ stamina will be severely tested - he was pretty exhausted in the second half of the Fury fight and an equally tired Fury wasn’t putting as much to Francis as AJ is capable of doing over the longer haul.

If Francis gets some big ones in early, he might just end proceedings before or by the mid way mark OR, at the very least, cause AJ to seriously clam up, making it that much easier for Ngannou to box his way through 10 rounds.

I’d expect to see AJ try to play it safe for the first 2-3 rounds but then he has to truly switch on and land some serious leather to get Francis’ respect if not also put some serious hurt on Ngannou altogether.

Refreshing to see two supremely fit SHWs engaging.

Last time two serious bangers looked as muscled and ripped as that was when Liston fought Cleveland Williams - though they were some 50 odd lbs south of the top weight for this fight.

272.6 lbs for 6’4” Ngannou - insane!

Rather than question and criticise anyone who might support Francis - let BOXING defend itself - it’s a great sport and I love it - the fight will unpack itself as it should and if the sport (at least the HW division) needs a shake up - then it is what it is -

Of course the big lure is the cross over novelty and associated $$$ - but however it has come to pass - outcomes notwithstanding, Francis’ propensity to fight - in terms of frequency and quality opponent selection, in its own right, has put a number of HWs to shame - most notably, the Fightin’ Man himself.

Do we really want that type of (non) fighting conduct to remain in place? Not me, and I imagine most other fans don’t either.

 

they're cross training. no one in the mma side thinks boxers cant win mma fights.

a pure boxer will lose 9 of 10 times against an mma fighter who likes to grapple. And not all mma is credible, regional mma with low level bums should not even count.

 

Still can't believe how many people are ignoring what Francis did to Fury. Can't wait to see Francis make history. Baddest man ever on the planet. Undisputed HW champion & UFC champion

 

but that might the reason he quits a lot. his body language in the andy fight was a man wanting to bolt and walk home.

 

Ngannou makes other mistakes like pulling straight back. AJ should have a field day, even if he fights tentatively. Fury had openings and landed but his problem was he has no power and he was out of shape. And Fury still won the fight. Unless Ngannou lands some punch that knocks AJ cold, he's going to lose. I see no clear path for Ngannou to win a decision.

I honestly don't think AJ will need to show heart, all he needs to do is fight smart, even if it doesn't make for an entertaining fight.