Anthony Joshua named the hardest puncher he’s been hit by in his boxing career and it’s not Andy Ruiz, but Francis Ngannou could take that title
Anthony Joshua has taken his share of whacks, in particular from heavy hitting Andy Ruiz and Oleksandr Usyk - but they are not the hardest punchers.
Ruiz and Usyk are the only two men to have beaten AJ in his career that has seen him reign as heavyweight champion twice.
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Ruiz floored the British superstar four times and stopped him when they first clashed in 2019 in Madison Square Garden, while Usyk outlanded Joshua and landed the harder punches in their first fight to win a twelve-round unanimous decision.
However, AJ insists Wladimir Klitschko hit him harder when he was put down by the heavyweight legend in their epic 2017 battle.
When asked the question on the , Joshua hesitated and then replied: “Who’s hit me the hardest? Yeah, Klitschko.
“I was gonna say Ruiz, but when he hit me that was like a concussion on the back of my head.
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“When I went in with Klitschko, yeah, I just knew this could go two ways.
“I could either win or I’m gonna be laid out on my back. You know when you get carried out on a stretcher?”
AJ eventually stopped Klitschko in the eleventh after a thrilling couple of middle rounds in which he exchanged knockdowns with the legendary champion.
Joshua put the Ukrainian down in the fifth before being flattened by a cataclysmic right hand three minutes later.
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Referencing that famous punch, he continued: “It was the 15 that came after that as well. This guy’s a beast, he’s a beast.“
Following his rematch win over Ruiz, Joshua knocked out Kubrat Pulev before being beaten again, twice.
Usyk proved too clever for AJ, though was understandably not named as the hardest puncher he's faced as he did not knock him down or out in either of their fights.
He's since bounced back with wins over Jermaine Franklin, Robert Helenius and Otto Wallin in 2023.
Joshua will now start 2024 with a new challenge as he faces a man who may yet take Klitschko's title as the hardest puncher he's faced.
AJ will take on Francis Ngannou on Friday night in Riyadh, with the ex-UFC KO king having already shown his ferocious punching power in the boxing ring by flooring Tyson Fury last year.
This is a man whose power was famously likened by UFC CEO Dana White to 'getting hit by a Ford Escort going as fast as it can and more powerful than a 12-pound sledgehammer'.
We'll have to see if Joshua updates his answer after facing the 'Predator'.
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