Anthony Joshua showed why he remains one of the biggest names in heavyweight. The former unified champion overcame a nightmare start and defeated Kristian Prenga by knockout this Saturday in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, in a fight that left him one step away from the expected confrontation against Tyson Fury.
The Briton suffered two knockdowns in the first round. Barely 20 seconds had passed when Prenga knocked him down with a powerful uppercut and, later in the same round, sent him to the canvas again, putting the most anticipated fight in the division in serious danger.
However, Joshua reacted with authority in the second episode. He took the initiative, began to pressure the Albanian and landed a solid right hand that made sense. After a combination of blows, he again found the final right hand to send Prenga to the canvas and achieve the knockout at 2:43 of the second round.
“He’s a serious fighter. Strong, tough and he tested me. But this is what champions do. They knock us down, we get up and keep going. That’s life,” Joshua said after the fight.
The victory practically leaves the expected duel against Tyson Fury, who a day before defeated Mariusz Wach by technical knockout in the seventh round in Thailand. Both boxers have been looking to face each other for years and have already signed contracts to meet at the end of 2026, although the fight has not yet been made official.
“I respect everything Fury has done and everything he has achieved, but I have been asking for this fight for a long time. We are here and I hope the fans enjoy a great show,” said Joshua.
The bout also marked the Englishman’s return since his knockout victory over Jake Paul last December. It was his first appearance since the traffic accident he suffered in Nigeria weeks after that triumph, a tragedy in which his friends Sina Ghami and Latif “Latz” Ayodele died.
“It has been very hard. They were my brothers, but I don’t want to talk about it,” he commented with obvious emotion.
With this result, Joshua, 36, has two consecutive victories and has a balance of six wins in his last seven fights. For his part, Kristian Prenga, 35, suffered the first knockout defeat of his professional career and left his record at 20 wins and two losses.
