Anthony Joshua vs. Francis Ngannou

Anthony Joshua vs. Francis Ngannou, billed as Knockout Chaos, was a professional crossover boxing match between 2-time former unified heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua and former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou.

Knockout Chaos

Date	8 March 2024
Venue	Kingdom Arena, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Tale of the tape
Boxer Anthony Joshua Francis Ngannou Nickname AJ The Predator Hometown Watford, Hertfordshire, UK Batié, Hauts-Plateaux, Cameroon Pre-fight record 27–3 (24 KO) 0–1 (Boxing) 17–3 (12 KO) (MMA) Age 34 years, 4 months 37 years, 6 months Height 6 ft 6 in (198 cm) 6 ft 4 in (193 cm) Weight 252+1⁄2 lb (115 kg) 272+1⁄2 lb (124 kg) Style Orthodox Orthodox Recognition WBC/WBO No. 1 Ranked Heavyweight WBA/IBF/The Ring No. 2 Ranked Heavyweight TBRB No. 3 Ranked Heavyweight Former 2 time unified heavyweight champion WBC No. 10 Ranked Heavyweight Former UFC Heavyweight Champion
Result
Joshua wins via 2nd-round KO

Background

Anthony Joshua (left) and Francis Ngannou (right)

Following his impressive stoppage of Otto Wallin in December 2023, Anthony Joshua was linked with IBF number one ranked Filip Hrgović or WBO "interim" titleholder Zhilei Zhang.^[1] However in January 2024 it was confirmed that he would face former UFC champion Francis Ngannou, who in his only previous boxing bout scored a knockdown against WBC and Lineal champion Tyson Fury before losing a somewhat controversial split decision.^[2][3]

The fights

Undercard

The undercard saw wins for Justis Huni and Mark Chamberlain.

Madrimov vs. Kurbanov

The first of two world title bouts on the card saw Israil Madrimov stop Magomed Kurbanov to win the vacant WBA Super Welterweight belt.

Preceded by vs. Raphael Igbokwe	Israil Madrimov's bouts 8 March 2024	Succeeded by vs. Terence Crawford
Preceded by vs. Michel Soro	Magomed Kurbanov's bouts 8 March 2024	Succeeded by vs. TBA

Vargas vs. Ball

This was followed by Nick Ball challenging WBC featherweight champion Rey Vargas.

The fight

After twice flooring the champion (once appearing to push him before handing a left hook) the bout was ruled a draw with scores of 116–110 for Ball, 114–112 for Vargas and 113–113.^[4]

According to CompuBox Ball landed with 111 of 472 punches thrown (23.5% connect rate) compared to 118 of 536 (22.0% connect rate) from Vargas.

Aftermath

Speaking after the bout to DAZN Ball said "I had two knockdowns and was putting the pressure on for the whole fight. I was the aggressor and thought I did enough to win it. It's a bit frustrating but that's how it is. I can't get angry at it." Meanwhile his promoter Frank Warren said "Nick Ball should be a world champion tonight and will no doubt be in the very near future."

Preceded by vs. O'Shaquie Foster	Rey Vargas's bouts 8 March 2024	Succeeded by vs. TBA
Preceded by vs. Isaac Dogboe	Nick Ball's bouts 8 March 2024	Succeeded by vs. Raymond Ford

Zhang vs. Parker

Knockout Chaos:Zhilei Zhang vs. Joseph Parker

Title(s) on the line	WBO interim heavyweight title
Tale of the tape
Boxer Zhilei Zhang Joseph Parker Nickname "Big Bang" "Lupesoliai La'auliolemalietoa" Hometown Zhoukou, Henan, China Auckland, Auckland Region, New Zealand Pre-fight record 26–1–1 (21 KOs) 34–3 (23 KOs) Age 40 years, 10 months 32 years, 1 month Height 6 ft 6 in (198 cm) 6 ft 4 in (193 cm) Weight 291+1⁄2 lb (132 kg) 247+1⁄2 lb (112 kg) Style Southpaw Orthodox Recognition WBO Interim Heavyweight Champion TBRB No. 2 Ranked Heavyweight The Ring No. 3 Ranked Heavyweight WBO No. 2 Ranked Heavyweight WBA/WBC No. 3 Ranked Heavyweight The Ring/TBRB No. 4 Ranked Heavyweight
Result
Parker wins via 12th-round MD

Zhilei Zhang (left) and Joseph Parker (right)

In the chief support WBO "Interim" titleholder Zhilei Zhang faced former WBO heavyweight champion Joseph Parker (WBO: 2nd WBC / WBA: 3rd).

The fight

Parker was dropped twice in the bout, once in 3rd with a left hand and once in the 8th with a left-right hook combination. However Zhang's lack of output compared to Parker cost him, as two of the judges scored it for Parker 114–112 & 115–111, with the third having it 113–113.^[5][6]

According to CompuBox Parker outlanded Zhang, landing with 101 of 349 punches thrown (28.9% connect rate) compared to 75 of 273 (27.4% connect rate) from Zhang.

Aftermath

Speaking after the bout Parker said "This is a great win. Zhang is a tough man, knocked me down twice. ... I'm very happy. .... We have a rematch [clause], so we're gonna do it again."

Zhang's co-manager Terry Lane suggested that he would activate the rematch clause.^[7]

Preceded by vs. Joe Joyce II	Zhilei Zhang's bouts 8 March 2024	Succeeded by vs. Deontay Wilder
Preceded by vs. Deontay Wilder	Joseph Parker's bouts 8 March 2024	Succeeded by vs. Daniel Dubois vs. Martin Bakole

Main Event

Joshua dominated the bout, knocking down Ngannou after Ngannou switched to southpaw in the last minute of the 1st round, with a straight right hand (a punch often dubbed as the 'southpaw killer'). Ngannou beat the count and reverted to orthodox but was floored again in the 2nd. He again rose to his feet, but Joshua finished the fight with another right hand that left Ngannou flat on the canvas for several minutes afterwards.^[8][9]

Aftermath

Speaking in the ring after the bout promoter Eddie Hearn said "You’re looking at the number one heavyweight in the world, unquestionably. On this form, there is no man in the world that can beat him in the heavyweight division," before stating his desire for Joshua to face the winner of the planned May 18 bout between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk.^[10]

Ngannou later confirmed that he will continue boxing despite the loss. However he dropped out of the top twenty rankings of WBC due to his second straight loss.^[11]

Fight card

Confirmed bouts:^[12]

Weight Class		vs.		Method	Round	Time	Notes
Main Card
Heavyweight	Anthony Joshua	def.	Francis Ngannou	KO	2 (10)	2:38
Heavyweight	Joseph Parker	def.	Zhilei Zhang (c)	MD	12		Note 1
Featherweight	Rey Vargas (c)	vs.	Nick Ball	SD	12		Note 2
Super Welterweight	Israil Madrimov	def.	Magomed Kurbanov	TKO	5 (12)	2:20	Note 3
Lightweight	Mark Chamberlain	def.	Gavin Gwynne	TKO	4 (10)	2:48	Note 4
Heavyweight	Justis Huni	def.	Kevin Lerena	UD	10		Note 5
Super Welterweight	Louis Greene	def.	Jack McGann	TKO	1 (10)	1:29
Heavyweight	Roman Fury	def.	Martin Svarc	PTS	4
Super Lightweight	Ziyad Almaayouf	def.	Christian Lopez Flores	PTS	6
Heavyweight	Andrii Novytskyi	def.	Juan Torres	KO	3 (8)	2:43

^Note 1 For WBO interim heavyweight title
^Note 2 For WBC featherweight title
^Note 3 For WBA super-welterweight title
^Note 4 For WBA Inter-continental lightweight title
^Note 5 For WBO Global heavyweight title