Deontay Wilder’s trainer Malik Scott has laid out his prediction for the clash between two-time world champion Anthony Joshua and former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou, just four months on from the latter’s professional debut.
Joshua was set to face Wilder in March, with the big reveal poised for after they fought on the same card on December 23rd. However, Wilder was outboxed by Joseph Parker and lost a wide points decision, with the long-awaited showdown collapsing once again.
As a result, fans assumed Joshua would face Filip Hrgovic in a bout that would likely be for the vacant IBF world title, which is likely to be available in the aftermath of Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk.
The world of boxing served up another plateful of unpredictability though, as it was announced that Joshua would face Ngannou, who is 0-1 in the boxing ring despite his Octagon success.
Ngannou almost provided fight fans with a generational upset, flooring WBC champion Fury when they met in October and losing a razor-thin split-decision to ‘The Gypsy King’ that was disputed by many, earning a top ten ranking with the WBC for his performance.
Now ‘The Predator’ will look to go one better and shut down the recent plaudits of ‘AJ’, who appeared to be back to his best against Otto Wallin last month, but Malik Scott told ES NEWS that he expects a win for Joshua.
“I think the same thing that I thought when they asked me about the fight two or three months ago, I think Joshua [wins], but I also thought Fury [would win comfortably] when he fought Ngannou.
“It is so hard to put any type of judgement on him [Ngannou], but you have got to commend him for what he did with Fury, you just have to.”
Joshua-Ngannou goes ahead on Friday March 8th in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, as ‘Riyadh Season’ draws to a close.