SPORTS FACTS AND FIGURES 8: ANTHONY JOSHUA FIGHTS FRANCIS NGANNOU ON MARCH 9
By Maloney L. Samaco
PhilBoxing.com
Mon, 08 Jan 2024
Promoter Eddie Hearn has confirmed that Anthony Joshua will fight UFC legend Francis Ngannou in his next fight. Ngannou shocked the world in his first professional boxing bout when he floored Tyson Fury last October 28, even though the WBC world heavyweight champion ultimately won on points via split decision.
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Ngannou will step again in the ring to face another British heavyweight in Joshua, who was victorious three times in 2023 as he is on the road to reviving his career after losing his world titles and losing successively to Oleksandr Usyk.
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News spread out on Friday that Joshua and Ngannou had signed a deal to face each other in a ten-round bout which will happen in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
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The match was confirmed by Joshua’s promoter Hearn, who said on X: "Tonight we confirm it’s a done deal! @anthonyjoshua v @francis_ngannou collide on a huge night in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia - press conference Jan 15 in London with full details dropping soon!"
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It is expected that the fight will take place on March 9, the date originally scheduled for Joshua vs Deontay Wilder. Joshua and Wilder had signed a contract to face off ahead of fighting on the same card on the Day of Reckoning in Saudi Arabia on December 23.
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In that event, Joshua scored an impressive fifth round stoppage over Swedish Otto Wallin, forcing Wallin to retire from the ring. But Wilder was completely outclassed by Parker with the scores of 118-111, 118-110 and 120-108.
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This time AJ will instead fight Ngannou in an interesting encounter after the MMA fighter almost scored an upset over Fury in a fight many predicted the Cameroonian-French mixed martial artist would lose easily.
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Ngannou incredibly sent the "Gypsy King" down to the canvas in the third round and was on the verge of seizing a huge upset after ten rounds of boxing.
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One judge scored the fight for Ngannou with a 95-94 score. But the two other judges awarded a split decision win to Fury with controversial scorecards of 96-93 and 95-94.
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Joshua's ultimate goal is to emerge as a three-time world heavyweight champion having lost his world title against Usyk in September 2021 and was defeated again when they rematched the following year.
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The NBA’s longest single-season losing streak is finally broken. The Detroit Pistons entered 2024 finally with a win, edging the Toronto Raptors, 129-127, Sunday morning (Manila time).
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Before that win, Detroit lost its previous 28 games, the longest losing streak in a single season, and tied for the most consecutive losses ever. But Detroit is still in the cellar with a 3-29 record, while Toronto dropped to 12-20 in the season.
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The 2010 NBA All-Star Game was played on February 14, 2010, the 59th edition of the NBA All-Star Game, and was held at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas. The recorded attendance for the All-Star Game was 108,713, the all-time attendance record for the sport of basketball.
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Sports History: January 8, 1945. University of Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team set an NCAA record by limiting Arkansas State to 6 points in a 75-6 win.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Maloney L. Samaco.
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