Anthony Joshua reveals one change he made to beat 'juggernaut' Francis Ngannou

10/09/2024 15:24

Anthony Joshua was able to do to Francis Ngannou, what many felt Tyson Fury should have done when they squared off in the ring.

The Cameroonian cage fighter caused Fury all kinds of problems last October despite the sizeable odds stacked against him.

Ngannou was making his professional boxing debut and had been given little-to-no chance against the then-WBC heavyweight champion of the world.

However, the novice boxer sent Fury tumbling to the canvas in the third round and pushed him all the way to the final bell.

It was a completely different story when he was matched up against Joshua five months later.

AJ looked in complete control throughout the fight and repeatedly found a home for his clubbing right hand.

Joshua found success in luring Ngannou in with hard and soft feints before timing his trademark shot over the top while the former UFC heavyweight champion advanced.

The result was a vicious yet dexterous knockout victory, which AJ credits to his focus over the past couple of years on improving his boxing IQ.

“I always look at the Ngannou fight, the guy was a juggernaut,” he told DAZN.

“He was massive and I thought to myself if I only depended on strength it would have been a lot tougher fight.

“But due to the fact I went through a process where I tried to improve my IQ, I was able to dispatch of the goliath in quick fashion.

“I’m not saying he was an elite boxer but I took it on the on the premises of what he done with Tyson Fury.”

Joshua’s approach to fights has significantly shifted in recent years.

AJ has become a far more patient and cerebral fighter since his knockout loss to Andy Ruiz Jr in June 2019.

Before Joshua would often rely heavily on his strength, size and power, whereas now he tends to pick his shots more.

He was heavily criticised for being ‘too gun shy’ in bouts against Oleksandr Usyk, Jermaine Franklin and Robert Helenius.

However, he appears to have found the perfect balance between aggression and patience under new trainer Ben Davison, who worked with him for his last two outings against Otto Wallin and Ngannou.

Both were complete boxing performances and earned him significant praise.