UFC icon Demetrius Johnson has surprisingly claimed that Anthony Joshua could beat Francis Ngannou in a mixed martial arts bout.
AJ suffered a brutal knockout win in a crossover showdown last week, which may have ended the former UFC heavyweight champion's boxing forays. Saudi Arabia.
The Watford fighter took less than two rounds to knock the MMA superstar unconscious in a brawl in Riyadh.
And after seeing the way he got rid of Ngannou, Johnson believes Joshua can have similar success in the cage — if The Predator is willing to be his only ally again.
The long-reigning former UFC flyweight champion said: YouTube Channel: “Would Anthony Joshua have beaten Francis Ngannou in a mixed martial arts match? I think he did.
“It's going to be another impressive match. AJ understands his distance. He understands the void.
“He has better hands than Francis and can make Francis whiff and whiff.
“It would be different if Francis was going to change tactics and wrestle in the clinch, but AJ is very athletic.
“He's smaller and more flexible. I think he can close the shot and give Francis Ngannou a shot.”
Ngannou, 37, shined in his professional boxing debut last October against WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury.
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The Cameroonian clubber cut and dropped in the third round of his match against the Gypsy King, but lost by split decision.
Like many other players, Johnson was shocked by Ngannou's play that night, but believes he showed all his cards against the Englishman.
He said: “Another thing that could have been Francis' downfall was that he had a boxing match with Tyson Fury.
“So Anthony Joshua got a chance to watch Francis boxing.
“What did he take away from the Francis vs. Tyson boxing match? He probably took it as, 'Okay, Francis can't move his head.'”
“He doesn't move his head very much. He's not very light on his feet.” In Tyson Fury's case, he's light on his feet, which is why Tyson is trying to avoid fights.
“This time, Anthony Joshua was able to get to work right from the start. It's usually not a good sign when your opponent doesn't react.”
Ngannou was devastated and heartbroken after the loss, but was adamant that his journey was far from over.
He told SecondsOut: [I still plan to box].
“Right now, I feel obligated to continue because I owe it to myself.
“Right now, I feel like I owe a debt to boxing, so I’m really going to give back.”
