Francis Ngannou’s next boxing opponent has been officially named

Former UFC heavyweight titleholder Francis Ngannou, who made his professional boxing debut last October, will return to the ring on March 9 in Riyadh, and his opponent will be former WBA, WBO and IBF world champion Anthony Joshua.

The ten-round bout between the Cameroonian and the Brit was officially announced by organizers in Saudi Arabia.

Anthony Joshua was scheduled to face Deontay Wilder in the scheduled event, however, the bout was scrapped after the American suffered a surprise defeat late last year at a big boxing night in Riyadh, losing a twelve round unanimous decision to New Zealand’s Joseph Parker.

The Briton gave Otto Wallin a telling beating on the same day, forcing the Swede’s corner to abandon the fight after the fifth round.

Two months earlier, Francis Ngannou made his professional boxing debut, losing by split decision to reigning WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury after ten rounds, knocking the Briton down in the third round.

After the fight, the result of which many fans and experts considered controversial, the “World Boxing Council” decided to include “The Predator” in the official ranking, placing him at number ten in the heavyweight division.

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