What a reigning champion couldn’t do, a former unified champion accomplished. Yes, that’s what Anthony Joshua did when he went against Francis Ngannou. ‘Knockout Chaos’ it was—on the whole—for the Cameroonian-American mixed martial artist; who came up for his second pro-boxing fight at the Kingdom Arena a few hours ago.
Many saw it as a boxing-versus-MMA battle. Hence, the victory of a thoroughbred boxer, in a way, bolstered the arguments of those purportedly fighting for boxing’s cause. Ryan Garcia probably counts himself in that legion. The light welterweight challenger, who has been making news for all sorts of different reasons, wrote off a note on his X/Twitter account immediately following ‘AJ’s victory. Mixed martial artists would undoubtedly read this message with keen interest and anticipation.
Ryan Garcia: Please maintain the ‘Lane Discipline’
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“Let this be A BIG WARNING to MMA fighters!!” fired Ryan Garcia. Then, shedding light on the signs of things to come, he said that mixed martial artists shouldn’t be making attempts to breach the squared circle. Any such endeavor would only exacerbate the situation. “Stop coming to boxing; it will only get worst,” he said. Rather than MMA fighters lining up for boxing matches, he seemingly believes that boxers getting into a cage appears more proportionate. After all, it only needs a single punch to close the matter.
Let this be A BIG WARNING to MMA fighters!! Stop coming to boxing it will only get worst. ITS more even if we just go to your sport! OVER! ONE PUNCH.
Sending healing prayers to FRANCIS! Your bravery and guts should be commendable.
CONGRATULATIONS Anthony Joshua. https://t.co/D5TMyUGqcQ
— RYAN GARCIA (@RyanGarcia) March 9, 2024
“ITS more even if we just go to your sport! OVER! ONE PUNCH,” Ryan Garcia said. Revealing a more compassionate side, the young Californian boxer expressed genuine concern for Francis Ngannou: “Sending healing prayers to FRANCIS! Your bravery and guts should be commendable.”
Of course, not many who saw the tweet agreed with Garcia, who is all set to meet archrival Devin Haney on April 20. One user said, “You lost me when you said that boxers would dominate the MMA scene—95% of boxers would get wrapped up and submitted within one round.”
The ‘Knockout Chaos’ follows the ‘Battle of the Baddest’. Both events took place at the same venue, the Kingdom Arena, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where Francis Ngannou debuted a few months ago on October 28.
‘AJ’ has finally arrived
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A jaw-dropping performance from Francis Ngannou saw Tyson Fury go down in the third round. The reigning WBC heavyweight champion emerged victorious. However, by all means, it was a Pyrrhic win for the Mancunian, as the judges awarded him a win by a split decision. Soon after, ‘The Predator’ found his name in the top-ten heavyweight ranks.
Probably many thought it would be an even fight. Anthony Joshua scored wins over not-so-known boxers last year. Hence, he was just emerging from the shadows of his consecutive losses to Oleksandr Usyk. Many perhaps didn’t believe he had a chance against a heavy hitter like the Cameroonian-French fighter. However, tonight, he proved every skeptic wrong. ‘AJ’ put on a performance that clearly announced his arrival at the big stage that had eluded him for the past few years.
Read More: Oscar De La Hoya Explains Why Anthony Joshua Beats Francis Ngannou
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What do you think of Anthony Joshua’s second-round win over Francis Ngannou? Do you think he’s ready to work with Tyson Fury in the near future?