Returning to the ring under the weight of personal tragedy, Anthony Joshua survived a major test in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, to claim his 30th professional victory against Kristian Prenga.
Fighting for the first time since a tragic car crash in Nigeria stole two of his closest friends, the former two-time world champion fought through early trouble to dispatch the underdog Albanian—keeping his high-stakes matchup with Tyson Fury alive.
Fury competed in a warm-up bout of his own on Friday night, stopping 46-year-old veteran Mariusz Wach.
Joshua got the job done quicker, as he ended his fight in the second round, but he had to survive a huge scare.
Joshua was floored within the first 30 seconds after being caught flush with a right uppercut and would find himself on the canvas again before the end of the session.
The Watford man bounced back in the very next round, securing the win with a devastating shot that separated Prenga from his senses at 2:43 of the second.
In the immediate aftermath of the bout, Joshua asked whether bitter rival Tyson Fury was in attendance.
Despite teasing that he would make the trip to Jeddah from Thailand, The Gypsy King was nowhere to be found.
This prompted ‘AJ’ to jokingly mimic one of Mike Tyson’s legendary post-fight interviews as he declared:
“I am going to rip his heart out. I am the meanest and most vicious champion there has ever been!”
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