Anthony Joshua was sent crashing to the canvas just 20 seconds into his comeback fight in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia — a thunderous right uppercut from underdog Kristian Prenga rocking the former two-time world heavyweight champion and stunning the arena. He took a knee again later in the first round, leaving the long-awaited Tyson Fury fight hanging by a thread.
But Joshua rose from the canvas, unleashed a barrage of heavy blows in the second round, and sent the Albanian tumbling through the ropes. Prenga could not beat the count, handing Joshua his 27th career stoppage and one of the greatest escapes of his career.
“Joshua knocked down twice before knocking out Prenga in second round to seal Fury fight.”
“It’s more than punch power. That was spirit, that was Latz, that was Sina, that was the families. It hurts to even talk about it. It has been tough,” said Joshua, 36, who choked up and stepped away from the microphone. He fought for the first time since surviving a December car crash in Nigeria that killed his close friends Sina Ghami and Latif ‘Latz’ Ayodele. Their names were embroidered on his chest and printed on the canvas alongside the words ‘My Brother’s Keeper’.
Promoter Eddie Hearn confirmed the Fury fight contract is signed, though the venue and date remain unknown. “We’ve signed the contract, everything’s done, but tonight is all about the strength that he showed to even be here tonight,” Hearn said.
Fury, who warmed up with a seventh-round TKO over Mariusz Wach in Thailand 24 hours earlier, was nowhere to be seen in Jeddah. Joshua said: “I respect everything he has done and everything that he has achieved, but as a fighting person, we’re here now. I hope the fans will be in for a lovely treat.”
