Former MMA Champion Francis Ngannou Wants to Rewrite Boxing History

One of the main boxing events in the first half of this year will be the struggle between Anthony Joshua and Francis Ngannou, which will be held on March 8 in Riyadh.

The reliable bookmaker company 1xBet presents the participants in the battle and answers the pressing question: How to bet on sports wisely? Follow the 1xBet website and bet on this and thousands of other sporting events worldwide!

Will the MMA star become a successful boxer?

The fight causes huge excitement due to the interest in Ngannou’s story. The Cameroonian has been building a career in professional MMA for a long time and has achieved impressive results in 20 fights: 17 wins with only 3 defeats. It allowed Francis to claim the UFC championship belt, and he completed his goal in 2021, beating the famous champion Stipe Miocic on his second attempt. In the second round, the Cameroonian sent the American to the floor with a heavy left straight, and a few seconds later, he finished off with a left hook.

Ngannou’s impressive striking skills have attracted the attention of prominent boxing promoters and organizations. But when Ngannou was offered a fight with boxing super-champion Tyson Fury, everyone thought that the Gypsy King would warm up before the clash with Oleksandr Usyk and easily knock out the MMA upstart. However, on October 28, 2023, the debutant knocked down the Briton and lost only by a split decision: 95-94, 94-95, 93-96. At the same time, many experts believed that Fury won only due to his big name and previous merits. Francis Ngannou was so good in the ring that shortly after, he entered the WBC rankings top 10, and contenders lined up to fight the heavyweight division’s new star.

Anthony Joshua’s last chance

The once world’s strongest heavyweight suffered two defeats in a row from Oleksandr Usyk and is now trying to revive his career and get over the offensive status of a “downed pilot.” After his knockout victory over Wladimir Klitschko in 2017, it seemed that the division had acquired a new dominator: Olympic champion Joshua had impeccable technique, a high boxing IQ, and a powerful punch, and in his first 22 fights, he achieved 21 early victories. However, in 2019, Anthony suffered a brutal knockout from the American Andy Ruiz and then lost twice to the Ukrainian on points, giving him his WBA Super, WBO, IBF, and IBO belts.

A victory over Ngannou will return the Briton to the top contenders for a fight with the Fury v Usyk pairing winner, but Joshua definitely shouldn’t expect an easy ride. Even in the struggle with the Ukrainian, it was noticeable that Anthony could not withstand constant pressure and was “floating” psychologically, while Ngannou would never miss the chance of a lifetime and would certainly give his titled opponent real hell in the ring. To better understand the Cameroonian’s mood and his motivation, you need to remember several moments. In search of a better life, he came to Europe only at the age of 26 and immediately ended up in a Spanish prison for illegally crossing the border. After his release, Ngannou went to Paris without money for food or housing. Francis lived on the street for a long time until chance brought him together with the French fighter Francis Carmont, who opened up the MMA world and allowed him to live in the training room.

And this is the man Anthony Joshua will meet, who from an early age was called the “golden boy” of British boxing and was carefully led from opponent to opponent.

Prediction for the Anthony Joshua v Francis Ngannou fight

The fighters are similar in size, and both have a knockout blow so the fight can finish early. Each of them has nothing to lose: a defeat to the MMA fighter could force Joshua to retire, and Ngannou risks never again approaching the fame and money that guarantees a title shot in boxing. At the same time, the preliminary odds for the fight on the bookmaker 1xBet website are with a large advantage in favor of Anthony Joshua. Bets on the British’s victory are accepted with x1.29 odds, while on the Cameroonian’s victory – x4.52. A draw is assessed as an improbable event with x12 odds. In this situation, the question arises: How to bet on sports wisely? It’s simple – take a small but more likely win for a bet on Joshua or risk money, but get a chance to hit the jackpot if Ngannou wins!