Anthony Joshua may have earned a knockout win over Kristian Prenga but the fight certainly didn’t unfold as most people expected.

Joshua was facing the Albanian in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Saturday, and it looked like a massive upset could be on the cards when he was dropped twice in the opening round.

‘AJ’ was able to recover and went on to secure a second round knockout victory to prevent the shock lossseemingly paving the way for the battle against Tyson Fury later this year.

One man who was ringside to witness the battle was former cruiserweight world champion Tony Bellewand he praised Joshua’s ability to turn things around in the fight after describing it as ‘chaos’.

“We predicted round two but I don’t think we foresaw that. That was chaos. He doesn’t see the uppercut coming and finds himself on the floor without knowing how he got there.

“The second one he did see it coming and he was able to clench down on the jaw. He got up and then the experience that he has he used tonight because he tied him up. Against Andy Ruiz he didn’t know what he was doing and didn’t know how to do that, but tonight he did.

“He showed once again there is no quit. To be that hurt in the first round and get up, that’s the recoveries of power. People talk about your chin, but it’s not, it’s the level of fitness that gets you up from the floor.

“When Joshua gets a fighter hurt he’s the best finisher in the division. Whenever he hurts someone they’re gone. I haven’t seen him drop anybody and they survive, only Andy Ruiz. He’s a ruthless finisher.”

The clash between Joshua and Fury is now expected to be announced soon for later this year, after Fury won his own interim fight on Friday by defeating Mariusz Wach.

Anthony Joshua had to overcome a major scare in his battle against Kristian Prenga.

The two fighters went head to head in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Saturdayin a clash that most fans expected to be a straightforward win for Joshua in order to set up the showdown with long-term rival and fellow former world champion Tyson Fury later this year.

Those plans nearly went up in smoke though, as ‘AJ’ was dropped twice in the first round, before managing to recover and land a big knockdown of his own in the second round that Prenga was unable to recover from to hand the British star the stoppage win.

After nearly suffering the shock defeat, Joshua revealed during his post-fight interview exactly what he made of Prenga’s power, admitting that with more experience, the Albanian could go on to become a serious threat in boxing.

“He’s a strong guy. Eddie Hearn wants to sign him now. He’s going to do well. He’s got a bright future. I’m a serious fighter and I know what I’m doing. Maybe with a bit more experience he’ll be better.

“He’s strong, durable, he showed me a good test. This is what we do. We get knocked down and stand up and keep going.”

Attention is now set to turn to the long-awaited fight between Fury and Joshua later this year, with ‘The Gypsy King’ also having been successful in his warm-up bout on Friday by claiming a seventh round retirement win over Mariusz Wach.

LIVE COVERAGE

Anthony Joshua returns to the ring against Kristian Prenga in Jeddah tonight as the former two-time heavyweight champion begins his comeback bid in Saudi Arabia.

Joshua headlines a Matchroom Boxing and Queensberry Promotions event at the Jeddah Superdome, with Hamzah Sheeraz defending the WBO super middleweight title against Simon Zachenhuber, and Josh Kelly defending his IBF super welterweight title against Caoimhin Agyarko.

World Boxing News provides live results and updates from Jeddah throughout the evening.

Live Scorecards:

• Reito Tsutsumi vs Alvino Herrera Meza

• Josh Kelly vs Kevin Agyarko

• Hamzah Sheeraz vs Simon Zachenhuber

• Anthony Joshua vs Kristian Prenga (including round-by-round)

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Anthony Joshua vs Kristian Prenga Results

Times are Local – AST

19:08

Saudi Arabia’s own Ziyad Almayouf continued his progress with an eight-round points victory over a game Frank Mango. Almaayouf dropped Mango early and boxed impressively, but had to climb off the canvas himself in the middle rounds before sealing the unanimous decision.

18:07

Mikey Tallon produced a superb body shot in tbe opening round to double-up Orlando Pino in agonizing pain for the full count.

The Liverpool super flyweight remains undefeated and impressive so far in his early career.

17:47

Mohammed Alakel systematically broke Lydon Chircop down with body shots, scoring multiple knockdowns before forcing a fifth-round stoppage.

17:16

Super featherweight Sultan Almohammed went through the gears before dropping Efren Besalduch with a crushing body shot and finishing the job with a follow-up shot to the head in the third round.

16:54

Omar Hikal produced a one-sided display at super middleweight, moving to 2-0 with a shutout points victory over Brian Castellano.

16:29

First up was Mohamed Mabrouk against Bryan Zapata at super lightweight. Mabrouk controlled the contest from start to finish, earning a comfortable four-round unanimous decision after only one judge gave Zapata a single round.

16:09

The action kicks off.

Updates will appear here as the action unfolds.

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Remaining Bouts

• Anthony Joshua vs Kristian Prenga – Heavyweight (12)

• Hamzah Sheeraz vs Simon Zachenhuber – WBO Super Middleweight Title (12)

• Josh Kelly vs Caoimhin Agyarko – IBF Super Welterweight Title (12)

• Reito Tsutsumi vs Alvino Herrera Meza – Super Featherweight (10)

• Jacob Bank vs Pawel August – Super Middleweight (8)

• Oleksandr Khyzhniak vs Lenny Patrach – Light Heavyweight (8)

• Nishant Dev vs Cesar Diaz – Super Welterweight (8)

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Preview

Joshua fights for the first time since defeating Jake Paul as he looks to move back into world title contention against unbeaten Albanian veteran Kristian Prenga.

The bout also marks Joshua’s first fight since a fatal car crash claimed the lives of his friends Latz and Sina. Joshua survived the tragedy and has paid tribute to both men on the ring apron in Jeddah.

Chief support sees Hamzah Sheeraz bid to retain the WBO super middleweight championship against Germany’s Simon Zachenhuber.

IBF super welterweight champion Josh Kelly also returns in an all-action clash with Caoimhin Agyarko.

Japanese prospect Reito Tsutsumi continues his professional development against Alvino Herrera Meza, while Jacob Bank, Oleksandr Khyzhniak, Nishant Dev, Mikie Tallon, Ziyad Almaayouf, Mohammed Alakel, Sultan Almohammed and Mohamed Mabrouk Yehya also feature on the undercard.

Updates will be added below as the action unfolds in Jeddah, with more live coverage on World Boxing News.

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About the Author

Phil Jay is the Editor-in-Chief of World Boxing News (WBN), a BWAA-acknowledged boxing news website founded in 2010. A veteran boxing reporter with 16 years of experience, he has interviewed world champions, broken international exclusives, and reported ringside from major events. His work is published worldwide through WBN and distributed on platforms including Apple News.

Read Phil Jay’s full bio and latest stories.