John Fury has nothing but praise for his son’s rival, Anthony Joshua
John Fury – the father of WBC and lineal heavyweight champion Tyson Fury – praised rival boxer Anthony Joshua after bumping into him in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Joshua (27-3, 24KO) takes on former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou (0-1) this Friday, headlining a stacked card in the Middle East.
While AJ has engaged in many heated back-and-forths with his son, Tyson, over the years, John Fury was full of praise when he came face-to-face with the Brit at the grand arrivals for “Knockout Chaos”, confessing that he has always been a big fan of his.
On Queensbury Boxing’s YouTube channel, ‘Big’ John said: “I’ve always had time for Joshua. He’s a great fighter and he’s done a lot for boxing. He will be world champion again.
“Respectful man, he was lovely and it was heartfelt. I’ve got nothing but admiration and respect for Joshua.”
Under the tutelage of British trainer Ben Davison, the former two-time world heavyweight champion will collide with a relative boxing novice, albeit a former UFC champion.
This will be Ngannou’s second professional bout following his dramatic debut when, back in October last year, he shocked the world by dropping Tyson Fury in the third round of their contest.
Convinced that he was on the wrong end of a split decision, Ngannou is now even more determined to establish himself as an elite level boxer, which would not be out of the question should he come though his vastly more experienced next opponent.
Elsewhere on the card – put together by Turki Alalshikh – another intriguing heavyweight dustup takes place between top contenders Joseph Parker and Zhilei Zhang, who square off for the WBO interim strap.
The winners of these two matchups – topping the bill in Riyadh – will likely quarrel for their rightful shot at the undisputed heavyweight championship which, for the first time in more than 20 years, is being contested when Fury and Oleksandr Usyk clash on May 18.