Boxing

Joshua stands tall amid Jeddah chaos to keep Fury mega-fight on track

DAZN

27, Jul

Joshua stands tall amid Jeddah chaos to keep Fury mega-fight on track

O'Leary vs. Chamberlain live on DAZN - Saturday

In his famous 1959 speech John F. Kennedy said, “The Chinese use two brush strokes to write the word 'crisis.' One brush stroke stands for danger: the other for opportunity. In a crisis, be aware of the danger - but recognise the opportunity.”

On Saturday night in Jeddah Anthony Joshua was all too aware of the danger - rising from the canvas twice before knocking out unknown Albanian Kristian Prenga - to set up the opportunity of a huge all-British heavyweight showdown with eternal rival Tyson Fury in November.

British boxing’s two biggest stars were in action on consecutive days over the weekend, with the solemn promise that they will face each other before the end of the year.

Fury kept his side of the bargain as he stopped Mariusz Wach on his stool in a low-key bout in Thailand. Fighting on a Friday afternoon UK time in front of no more than 1500 fans in Pattaya - with no live broadcast - was peak Fury by the way.

Anything but straightforward in Saudi

On Saturday it was Joshua’s turn, and given the circumstances, this was never going to be an easy return to action for the former two-time unified heavyweight titleholder.

Almost seven months to the day since he was involved in a car accident in Nigeria – an accident which tragically claimed the lives of his two closest friends Sina Ghami and Latif ‘Latz’ Ayodele - the big man was back in the ring at the plush Jeddah Superdome.

The bookies – who rarely get things wrong – chalked this up as a straightforward assignment and AJ was a best price 1/10 for victory before the first bell.

It was anything but straightforward in Saudi, however.

Joshua defeats Prenga in dramatic triumph

Watch: 'AJ' survives double knockdown to destroy Albanian

Put simply, Prenga didn’t read the script and after 20 seconds Fury vs Joshua looked further away than ever as the Albanian underdog detonated an uppercut that sent shockwaves through the sport.

Time seemed to stand still for a moment as the now 30-4 (27) Watford superstar hit the deck and then quickly scrambled to his feet. One of the biggest shocks in heavyweight history was on, and naturally there were some worried faces at ringside.

'I thought it was all over' - Hearn

Eddie Hearn looked shaken and the Matchroom head honcho would have been given untold grief for signing off Joshua’s return against a fighter who had won all 20 of his fights inside the distance if Prenga had gone on to do the unthinkable.

Hearn was honest enough to say on DAZN after the fight “I thought it was all over,” but as he has done before in his career, AJ walked through the fire before delivering another highlight reel KO in round two.

So now all roads lead to a super fight in November and - despite the miles on the clock and the fact both men are a few years removed from their absolute sporting primes - I have a sneaking suspicion that Fury v Joshua is going to be an absolute riot.

Joshua was a wrecking ball at his peak and despite his dimensions Fury could move like a middleweight. The fact that neither man is what they once were only adds to the intrigue.

Two fighters who are polar opposites in terms of physique and temperament.

Depending on what mood he is in, Fury can be crude and cutting in interviews. But regardless of whatever chaos is going on around him he’s always had the ability to climb into the ring and box with the intelligence of a chess grandmaster.

In contrast AJ resembles the product of a laboratory experiment determined to build the perfect modern heavyweight. Immaculate physique. Flawless manners. Impeccable media training.

For years - rightly or wrongly - this fight has been the sport’s most persistent mirage. A big fight delayed by retirements, unretirements, television deals, shifting empires and enough false dawns to exhaust even the most enthusiastic of weather forecasters.

Two heavyweight behemoths who have been circling each other for a decade. But at last - finally - we are here. And given we opened with a JFK quote, let’s close with one.

"If not us, who? If not now, when?"