British boxer Anthony Joshua has crushed former UFC title-holder Francis Ngannou in Saudi Arabia.

The former two-time world champion demolished the ex-MMA star by knockout in the second round with a huge right hand.

Cameroonian fighter Ngannou toppled to the canvas after the destructive final punch from 34-year-old Joshua, as the crowd in Riyadh’s Kingdom Arena erupted.

Dazed and hurt, Ngannou managed to recover and exchanged words with Joshua, as the victor urged him “not to leave” boxing despite his crushing defeat.

Image:
Ngannou was left stunned by the power of Joshua’s punches. Pic: Sky Sports

Joshua praised his opponent on his October bout with Tyson Fury – a clash which the Cameroonian narrowly lost – saying: “When I saw the fight with Fury, I thought damn, this guy could fight, I wanted a piece of that.”

The boxer who hails from Watford added Ngannou was an “inspiration [and a] a great champion” and the loss “shouldn’t take away from his capabilities”.

“He can come again. I told him he shouldn’t leave boxing. He’s two fights in, and he’s fought the best”, Joshua said.

More from World

Joshua’s words of comfort came after a relentless couple of rounds, where he floored Ngannou twice before knocking him out cold with an unblocked right hand.

Ngannou began the fight well with a few early hits but was shaken by the might of the Londoner whose boxing career continues to shine.

Joshua won his last three fights before accepting this meeting with Ngannou, whose talent and name recognition turned it into a big-money matchup.

Next on the cards for Joshua is the winner of the Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk which takes place at the same venue in May, as he confidently said: “If they want me, they can come knocking at my door. If they do knock on the door, I say let’s go.”

‘Baddest man on the planet’

Eddie Hearn who has promoted Joshua since his professional debut in 2013, stood proudly beside the winner before saying: “You are looking at the baddest man on the planet. The number one heavyweight in the world.

“There’s a brilliant fighter down there in Tyson Fury. Please beat Oleksandr Usyk, because you will get the biggest fight of all time.”

This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.

Please refresh the page for the fullest version.

You can receive breaking news alerts on a smartphone or tablet via the Sky News app. You can also follow @SkyNews on X or subscribe to our YouTube channel to keep up with the latest news.