Anthony Joshua recovered from two first-round knockdowns to stop Kristian Prenga in the second round in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The stoppage victory prevents a major upset and clears the path for a heavyweight showdown against Tyson Fury later this year.
The heavyweight contest in Jeddah began in chaotic fashion as the Albanian opponent caught Joshua early in the opening frame. An unexpected uppercut floored the former world champion before a second knockdown threatened a monumental upset. However, Joshua relied on his veteran experience to smother Prenga, tying him up to survive the bell.
Ringside analyst and former cruiserweight world champion Tony Bellew reflected on the wild opening three minutes. He said: “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.”
Bellew noted that Joshua demonstrated key technical adjustments to survive the initial crisis. He said: “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.”
Joshua responded decisively in the second round. He hurt Prenga and finished the fight immediately.
Addressing Joshua’s ability to recover from severe danger, Bellew pointed to his conditioning rather than durability alone. He said: “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.”
Once Joshua turned the momentum, his finishing capability proved decisive. Bellew added: “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 result maintains the timeline for a long-awaited heavyweight clash between Joshua and Fury later this year. Fury successfully completed his own tune-up bout by defeating Mariusz Wach on Friday, leaving both fighters ready for a formal fight announcement.
