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Zhilei Zhang: ‘Anthony Joshua will never fight me’

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Zhilei Zhang and Anthony Jushua

Heavyweight contender Zhilei Zhang believes old amateur rival Anthony Joshua has long been ducking him and won’t fight him in the future.

Back when both men were being promoted by Eddie Hearn, and Joshua held versions of the heavyweight title, a defence against Zhang in China was frequently mentioned. But the reunion of 2012 Olympic rivals never materialized.

Zhang’s stock has risen since those days. He twice defeated Joe Joyce and, when representing Queensberry at the June ‘5 v 5’ event, he knocked out Deontay Wilder who was moonlighting for Matchroom. Zhang, however, has inferred that Joshua never fancied the fight and won’t do so in the future.

“Mark my words, he’s not fighting me. He’s not going to fight me, ever,” said Zhang when speaking on The MMA Hour. “Because after the 2012 Olympic Games, that was when we initially collided. After that, it’s been so many years. I was with Matchroom, and I know what happened. I don’t think he’s ever going to fight me.”

Joshua recently faced former UFC world champion Francis Ngannou in a professional boxing match. The fight was a mismatch, with Joshua securing a devastating finish in the second round. Zhang believes Joshua’s choice of opponents in recent fights shows that he would rather take on easier opposition than face the 280-pound southpaw.

“My managers flew to London, and I got words. So, I don’t think he’s going to fight me. Look at his previous opponents – Francis Ngannou from the UFC, Robert Helenius, I don’t think he has what it takes to stand up to me. The way he picks his opponents says a lot about him.”

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BOXING

Joshua’s camp accuses Dubois of avoiding drug tests

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Anthony Joshua and  Daniel Dubois

Anthony Joshua‘s team is furious with Daniel Dubois, alleging that Dubois has failed to sign up for additional drug testing ahead of their upcoming fight.

The former sparring partners are set to clash for the IBF heavyweight title in September at Wembley Stadium. However, Joshua’s camp has claimed that Dubois has not yet enrolled for testing with the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association (VADA).

On Tuesday, Joshua’s team tweeted: “Evening @Queensberry… any update on why @DynamiteDubois isn’t signed up for @Vada_Testing yet??”

In response, Queensberry Promotions replied: “Daniel is enrolled as VADA will confirm.”

This controversy follows a heated exchange between Joshua and Dubois during a joint interview ahead of their September 21 title fight. Tensions flared when Dubois asserted that he was ready to “go now” if Joshua “wants to swing.”

Joshua retorted, “Shut up, relax. I’ll throw this f***ing chair across your face. Don’t disrespect me.”
Dubois tried to stay composed, responding, “You can’t intimidate me, who do you think you are?”

This exchange escalated to the point where Joshua got out of his seat, and the two fighters had to be separated by security as promoters Frank Warren and Eddie Hearn watched.

Joshua continued, “Daniel, don’t disrespect me or I’ll put this chair through your face. Warn this little boy not to disrespect me. I don’t take disrespect lightly, you know. Don’t sit on the table telling me we can go now, telling me this and that.”

Promoter Frank Warren commented, “This was serious. We don’t need any stunts to sell this fight.”

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BOXING

Zhang Accuses Joshua Of Ducking Their Fight

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Anthony Joshua

Chinese heavyweight Zhilei Zhang has spoken out against former two-time world champion Brit Anthony Joshua, expressing his interest in fighting him.

Zhilei said in an interview with MMA Hour:

Joshua last stepped into the ring against Francis Ngannou in March of this year. That fight, which was stopped in the second round, ended in favor of Anthony by knockout. He has 28 wins (25 by knockout) and three losses on his record.

On the night of June 2 in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) Zhang won by knockout in the fifth round over American Deontay Wilder. He has 27 wins (22 by knockout), two losses and one draw on his record.

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BOXING

Former Heavyweight Champion ‘Knows’ Tyson Fury Is Scared To Face Him: “They Lied About Me”

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Tyson Fury co-starred in the first undisputed heavyweight clash in over two decades this year, losing out on a split decision to Oleksandr Usyk.

Before the fight was made, the Brit’s team came under fire from some corners of the boxing world for matchmaking, choosing a voluntary defence against Derek Chisora in late 2022 before returning ten months later to face former UFC Champion and boxing debutant, Francis Ngannou.

During that time, Fury said that nobody was willing to step up and face him, including former unified champion Andy Ruiz Jr. The Mexican-American – who was ranked highly with the WBC at the time – was accused of pricing himself out, with claims that he asked for $20 million for the bout.

Speaking to Cornerman Boxing, Ruiz Jr said that it was a lie to cover up the fact that Fury was afraid to fight him.

“Tyson Fury – everybody kept saying that I was asking for too much money. Everything was a lie, bro. That’s what I know that people are scared to fight me. That’s why I gotta be 100%.

Yes [I think Fury is scared]. Everybody is. Everybody is always gonna underestimate this little man. It’s gonna be hard. With my style it’s a little hard to adapt to.”

A fight between the pair couldn’t seem further away at this point, with Fury set to rematch Usyk in December and Ruiz to return from a near-two year layoff to face Jarrell Miller on August 3.

Should he win, the 34-year-old is adamant he still wants the fight as well as a challenge against Usyk and a trilogy with Anthony Joshua – the man he won three belts from before losing them back in an immediate second fight.

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BOXING

Ali greatest boxer ever, says Joshua

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Anthony Joshua

Anthony Joshua has no doubt about who he considers to be the best boxer ever to lace up the gloves as he immediately went with American Legend Muhammad Ali when speaking to Men’s Health.

“Historically, Ali. By a mile,” Joshua said.

After a gold medal-laced amateur career, Ali beat George Foreman, Sonny Liston, Joe Frazier and Earnie Shavers in a 61-fight campaign. The undisputed heavyweight champion formerly known as Cassius Clay left his mark not just on the sport but culture entire.

Meanwhile, Joshua can rightly claim that he has been one of the standouts of the current era. He quickly rose through the amateur ranks to become an Olympic Gold Medalist at London 2012 just a couple of years after picking up the sport rather late aged 18.

Once he turned professional, Joshua went on an impressive run of early knockouts, including picking up the British title with a stoppage of Dillian Whyte back in December 2015.

Anthony Joshua

Related News
  •  Joshua on verge of breaking Fury record
  •  Joshua has edge against Dubois — Hearn
  •  Fans want Joshua to beat Southgate after subpar England displays

His first world title came with another stoppage, this time of Charles Martin, and he unified with wins over Joseph Parker, who was the first man to take him the distance, and a stoppage of long-reigning champion Wladimir Klitschko.

After some routine defences he hit his first stumbling block in New York’s Madison Square Garden when he was halted by underdog and late stand-in Andy Ruiz Jr, though quickly exacted revenge in the rematch.

2021 and 2022 proved difficult years with back-to-back losses to the eventual undisputed champion Oleksandr Usyk, though since then he has got back to winning ways with a trip of stoppages over Otto Wallin, Robert Helenius and Francis Ngannou.

Next up for Joshua is a shot at becoming a three-time world heavyweight champion when he takes on Daniel Dubois for the IBF title at Wembley in September. That is a feat only repeated at heavyweight by Ali, who was also undisputed champion from 1974 to 1978 and is often considered one of the greatest sportsmen of the last century.

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BOXING

Ali greatest boxer ever, says Joshua

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Anthony Joshua

Anthony Joshua has no doubt about who he considers to be the best boxer ever to lace up the gloves as he immediately went with American Legend Muhammad Ali when speaking to Men’s Health.

“Historically, Ali. By a mile,” Joshua said.

After a gold medal-laced amateur career, Ali beat George Foreman, Sonny Liston, Joe Frazier and Earnie Shavers in a 61-fight campaign. The undisputed heavyweight champion formerly known as Cassius Clay left his mark not just on the sport but culture entire.

Meanwhile, Joshua can rightly claim that he has been one of the standouts of the current era. He quickly rose through the amateur ranks to become an Olympic Gold Medalist at London 2012 just a couple of years after picking up the sport rather late aged 18.

Once he turned professional, Joshua went on an impressive run of early knockouts, including picking up the British title with a stoppage of Dillian Whyte back in December 2015.

Anthony Joshua

Related News
  •  Joshua on verge of breaking Fury record
  •  Joshua has edge against Dubois — Hearn
  •  Fans want Joshua to beat Southgate after subpar England displays

His first world title came with another stoppage, this time of Charles Martin, and he unified with wins over Joseph Parker, who was the first man to take him the distance, and a stoppage of long-reigning champion Wladimir Klitschko.

After some routine defences he hit his first stumbling block in New York’s Madison Square Garden when he was halted by underdog and late stand-in Andy Ruiz Jr, though quickly exacted revenge in the rematch.

2021 and 2022 proved difficult years with back-to-back losses to the eventual undisputed champion Oleksandr Usyk, though since then he has got back to winning ways with a trip of stoppages over Otto Wallin, Robert Helenius and Francis Ngannou.

Next up for Joshua is a shot at becoming a three-time world heavyweight champion when he takes on Daniel Dubois for the IBF title at Wembley in September. That is a feat only repeated at heavyweight by Ali, who was also undisputed champion from 1974 to 1978 and is often considered one of the greatest sportsmen of the last century.

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BOXING

Eddie Hearn Warns Dubois: Trading Blows with Joshua Will Be Costly

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Anthony Joshua

Dubois and Joshua prepare for explosive showdown, Hearn predicts AJ’s precision will prevail

Eddie Hearn has warned Daniel Dubois before the Anthony Joshua fight that he will be outgunned if he trades with Joshua. Dubois, 26, will make the first defence of his International Boxing Federation heavyweight title against Anthony Joshua on September 21 at Wembley Stadium. He has won consecutive fights against Jarrell Miller and Filip Hrgovic, demonstrating an excellent capacity to inflict and absorb significant damage.

Interestingly, Joshua last willingly traded a match with an opponent in 2019, when he faced Andy Ruiz, who unexpectedly stopped him, but the 34-year-old and Dubois not only had to be separated when they first met as opponents but, the aggression they are expected to fight with means that their contest is widely expected to be decided by whoever lands the first truly devastating punch.

Ruiz’s first setback of his career has prompted the Olympic gold champion to seek a more sophisticated edge. On the other hand, Dubois has increased his confidence by refusing to be frightened by heavy-handed opponents, while his promoter, Eddie Hearn, argues that accepting the bout will be a terrible mistake.

“Both are going to be letting their hands go,” Eddie said in media reports. “Both are very dangerous. Some people call it a ‘shootout’ but I think ‘AJ’s’ top sniper. He’s too accurate; he’s too good; and I think if you’re going to get hit against Anthony Joshua, you’re going to have serious problems, and AJ’s not gonna stand in front of him like Filip Hrgovic and just ship shots,” he added.

“It’s two very dangerous heavyweight punchers, who are in the form and confidence of their career. For Dubois, the Miller and the Hrgovic fight have taken him to the most dangerous point of his career so far. It’s not a good time to fight Dubois, and it’s definitely not a good time to fight AJ. The key points for me are two massive punchers in their absolute primes,” he added.

Deontay Wilder’s defeat by Zhilei Zhang in June effectively ended his long-term ambitions of facing Joshua. This forthcoming bout is deemed similar to the previous one between Deontay and Zhilei, and Hearn had a magnificent response to the similarity of the two fights. “Joshua-Wilder was a unique fight. But the similarities between the fights are – again, they’re two massive punchers and fast punchers. In that respect, it’s a fight that captures the imagination because it’s very dangerous,” added Hearn.
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BOXING

rank Bruno Reveals His Tyson Fury-Oleksandr Usyk Score: “He Won That Fight”

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Following a fascinating first encounter, Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk will renew their rivalries on December 21.

When these two heavyweight champions first met in May, it was the first time the undisputed title had been contested since Lennox Lewis won it almost a quarter of a century before.

In a close fight, both men had periods of success, though it was the Ukrainian southpaw who landed the standout blow of the battle and sent Fury spinning around the ropes to earn himself a knockdown.

After 12 rounds, he was awarded a split decision win to become the holder of all four major belts plus the Ring Magazine and lineal title, six years after doing the same down at cruiserweight, and 12 years after becoming an Olympic gold medalist.

Speaking to the Criminal Connection Podcast, former WBC heavyweight champion Frank Bruno was asked for his view on who won the fight and said he scored it in favour Usyk.

“Usyk won, I think. You can’t really deny that. You can try and go round the corners or whatever but Usyk won.”

Since the final bell, Usyk has admitted he made mistakes that will not be repeated in the rematch, while Fury has said he was having too much fun and next time will get the job done properly.

Former Fury victim Dillian Whyte has claimed it could be hard for ‘The Gyspy King’ to turn things around in the second fight given the toll previous battles may have taken him and mindful of the fact that Usyk’s confidence will be through the roof after winning the initial meeting.

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BOXING

Joe Rogan Makes Controversial Claim About Tyson Fury vs Francis Ngannou

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  • Joe Rogan delved into the possibility of the Ngannou vs Fury fight being fixed, but offered no concrete evidence, only speculation.
  • Rogan’s conversation with Rampage Jackson on the topic of fight fixes highlighted differing opinions on Tyson Fury’s strategy.
  • Francis Ngannou’s transition from the UFC to the PFL raises questions about his future fights and the potential for matchups with heavyweight fighters.

Joe Rogan has been the mouthpiece for the UFC since 1997. He started his podcast a little over 10 years later, which has been a longer format for fight fans to learn more about the MMA athletes they love and cherish. Rogan has been known to flesh out multiple scenarios for a single topic because of his three-hour-plus show. The UFC’s color commentator has an unrivaled eye when it comes to the sport. His passion and knowledge was a significant reason the sport became so popular in the early 2000s.

On a newly released episode, Rogan was joined by former UFC champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. “Rampage” has seen it all in the sport of MMA. Jackson was a prominent fighter for the Japanese-based MMA organization, PRIDE FC, where it has been heavily rumored that steroid use was rampant, with rumors of fixed fights, per Rampage.

 

Rogan And Jackson Talked About Fixes in Fighting

And discussed whether it’s possible the Francis Ngannou vs Tyson Fury fight was fixed

It should be noted that neither Rogan nor Rampage provided any evidence one way or another, and were merely speculating on the show. Rogan brought up the theory to Jackson that the Francis Ngannou and Tyson Fury fight was fixed because of a future match-up with Oleksandr Usyk. It is unclear, though, whether he thinks it could have been pre-written and the fighters followed a script, or if the judges had their scores already sorted regardless of what the fighters did.

“He’s fighting one of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all-time and drops him in the second round. … And then he beat him up in the eighth round too. I thought [Ngannou] won that fight, but, you know, they were setting up that Usyk fight. They were not gonna let [Ngannou win], it just seemed like the fix was in a little bit.”

Rogan continued: “It was close enough that they could pull it off. You could go, ‘Ok, maybe. Maybe you could see him winning that,’ but I don’t think so. I thought Francis won it. A lot of people thought Francis won it.”

A contrasting viewpoint to Rogan’s was brought up a few weeks ago during one of his fight companion shows, where Rogan argued with the comedian Bryan Callen, who was saying that Tyson Fury ‘carried’ Francis Ngannou much in the same way Floyd Mayweather let Conor McGregor gain some success before closing the show himself.

“He might’ve had incentive to keep that fight going. The idea that Tyson Fury didn’t have a bag of tricks, that he didn’t carry him. For me, it’s very strange for me. It’s very strange. I don’t know maybe he didn’t train at all.”

Rogan’s response to Callen:

“Shut the f*** up! … If he was carrying , all that s*** would’ve went out the window after he got dropped or rocked like that!”

Francis Ngannou

Francis Ngannou’s Next Fight

MMA record: 17-3 (12 KOs, 4 SUBs), Boxing record: 0-2, Best win: Cyril Gane

Though Ngannou has banked around $30 million — if not more — in his two massive boxing bouts, there is still a fire inside to prove to gain the respect of those that have doubted him. In an unceremonious affair, Ngannou parted ways with the UFC after UFC 270 because of his strict contract that wouldn’t allow him to explore the sweet science. The Cameroonian heavyweight fighter landed with the PFL, but is yet to debut in the tier 2 MMA organization.

The ultimate hope for Ngannou’s future as a Mixed Martial Artist is that now that the UFC and Riyadh have officially started to collaborate (starting with UFC 306), that we could get the greatest UFC heavyweight fight of all-time in Ngannou versus Jon Jones (barring Jones getting past Stipe Miocic in November). Another possible fight for Ngannou, could be a return to the ring against another heavy-handed puncher in Deontay Wilder.

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BOXING

Joe Rogan’s Damning Verdict On Francis Ngannou vs. Tyson Fury

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Francis Ngannou and Tyson Fury
  • Joe Rogan believes Ngannou was cheated in Fury fight due to upcoming Usyk match – controversy ensues.
  • Despite losses, Ngannou’s paydays in boxing satisfactory to Rogan, with hope for PFL debut in the future.
  • Rogan asserts Ngannou’s presence crucial for PFL’s success, believes debut necessary for organization’s growth.

In the aftermath of Francis Ngannou’s much-anticipated boxing debut against Tyson Fury last October, controversy continues to surround the bout. UFC commentator Joe Rogan has now voiced his belief that the outcome was manipulated.

Although nine months have passed since the fight, the split decision loss for Ngannou remains a hot topic in the combat sports community. Many, including Rogan, assert that Ngannou was the true victor, especially after he knocked down Fury in the third round.

Joe Rogan Believes Francis Ngannou vs. Tyson Fury Was Fixed

The UFC Commentator Believes Fury’s Undisputed Fight With Usyk Was Protected

Rogan speculated on his podcast, The Joe Rogan Experience, that the result may have been skewed to protect Fury’s upcoming match against Oleksandr Usyk.

“I thought Francis won that fight. But they were setting up the Usyk fight. It just seemed like the fix was in a little bit. It was close enough that they could pull it off and you go, ‘Okay maybe, maybe you can see Fury winning that,’ but I don’t think so. I thought Francis won it, a lot of people thought Francis won it.”

Despite the loss, Ngannou’s performance earned him a spot in the boxing rankings and led to a subsequent bout against Anthony Joshua. Unfortunately for Ngannou, Joshua knocked him out in the second round of that fight.

Rogan expressed satisfaction that Ngannou secured significant paydays from his boxing endeavors, despite the setbacks.

Rogan expressed satisfaction that Ngannou secured a significant payday from the Tyson Fury fight, particularly since many, including Dana White, had dismissed its importance. Ngannou’s knockdown of Fury and perceived victory in the eyes of many led to another substantial payday against Joshua. While Rogan is pleased Ngannou made money, he wishes it had been earned in the UFC.

Joe Rogan Believes The PFL Needs Francis Ngannou

Francis Ngannou

Ngannou signed with the Professional Fighters League (PFL) last year but has yet to debut in the Smartcage. PFL chairman Donn Davis hopes Ngannou will fight this year. The PFL heavyweight champion, Renan Ferreira, earned his chance to welcome Ngannou to the promotion by defeating Bellator heavyweight champion Ryan Bader earlier this year. However, a date for Ngannou’s PFL debut remains unset.

Rogan believes Ngannou’s involvement is crucial for the PFL’s success. “Right now, the only way an organization could benefit – like PFL signed Francis. That’s probably the only way that PFL’s gonna get people to pay attention. You have to have someone like Francis,” Rogan concluded.

It is yet to be seen how The Predator bounces back from a devastating loss to Anthony Joshua and the death of his son Kobe.

Ngannou will likely make his return in late 2024 for his PFL debut.

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