17 January 2024 , 09:22
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Anthony Joshua insists he has rediscovered his nasty side as he prepares to take on Francis Ngannou.
Joshua will take on the former UFC heavyweight champion in Saudi Arabia on March 8 with victory keeping alive his chances of fighting for the undisputed title. And having teamed up with Tyson Fury's former trainer Ben Davison, Joshua is confident he can continue to deliver explosive performances.
The two-time heavyweight world champion stopped Dililan Whyte in 2015, avenging his defeat by his rival in the amateurs. The adversaries were due to clash again last year but Whyte returned an adverse finding in a drug test on the eve of the fight. Joshua instead fought - and knocked out - Robert Helenius before going on to stop Otto Wallin two days before Christmas.
“The reason I was able to gel with Ben is because he doesn’t try to change your style," Joshua said. “He kind of looks at your attributes and adds to what you’re good at. I went to a stage where I was trying to change my style: a bit of back-foot boxing, box behind the jab, stick and move, not be explosive, control the pace, and stuff like that.
“But Ben was like: ‘That’s not your body type! You’re a f***ing big unit, you’re explosive, go and knock f***ing people out. Basically, work to your body type. So, we got along in that sense. He gets it. I am a power puncher myself, I break peoples’ eye sockets, I broke Wallin’s nose and eye socket, Helenius got sparked out, I f***ing ruined Dillian Whyte’s career with an uppercut, the list goes on.”
Eddie Hearn opens talks for Anthony Joshua vs Francis Ngannou heavyweight fight
Ngannou almost caused a sensational upset on his boxing debut last October when he dropped Fury before falling to a controversial points defeat. That display earned him a shot at Joshua who is confident he can learn from Fury's mistakes. "He brings two arms, a body, like every other fighter does. But it’s his mind that is different. Everyone has their own unique mind. In terms of the frame and make up, I’ve seen people like him and he’s seen people like me many times before, but it’s his mind that I have to conquer in the ring," he added.
"You have to take their soul and spirit, and I am looking for the challenge for sure, it’s going to be good, explosive. There’s many ways to skin a cat, I can counter-punch, he can counter-punch. We can both box, we can both trade, it’s going to be a good fight.. I’m not really concerned about the world, I’m trying to conquer where I live and make everyone know that I am the one that puts boxing on the map."