The MMA star didn’t appreciate his opponent arriving late and making him struggle before the fight

READ MORE ;Anthony Joshua ‘back’ and tipped to beat Tyson Fury after overcoming ‘mental block’ in Francis Ngannou fight

That brutal knock out Francis Ngannou suffered against Anthony Joshua was seen by the entire world that enjoys boxing. It is an image that will be hard to erase from his memory and he is even starting to look for excuses. More than the KO itself, Ngannou’s ego was hurt bad after his impressive debut against Tyson Fury. In a recent statement from him, Francis accused Anthony Joshua’s team of wasting precious time when he arrived at the arena right on time. This proves how novice Ngannou is at this fighting game and that getting played like this will likely happen again. He had already spoken about this on an Instagram live but he doubled down during his recent interview with Ariel Helwani at ‘The MMA Hour’.

He said: “Listen, I think we both fight at 3am. It’s not like I fought at 3 a.m. and he fought at like midnight or something. We both fought at 3am. What I think, something that’s happened is that they get me to the arena very early. Like my pickup time was 10.30pm to go to the arena. And then when we get to the arena, they tell us that we are scheduled around 1.45am. right? They come to the locker around 1 and Joshua [was just arriving around 1]. I’m like, ‘OK, we are fighting at the same time, how come I have a pickup time?’ We received a schedule, an email, and then for some reason I was there at least one hour before. But for the fight, at least two hours beforehand. They do this kind of trick to get you tired. I was like cool, I was like, ‘Bro, it’s OK.’ I didn’t know how it was, how important that was, until the fight day that I have to get there two hours before.”

Anthony Joshua did not respond to these accusations, nor do we think he ever will respond because that is how the game is played. Fighters who know this sport will all tell you that they need to be prepared for anything. Ngannou wasn’t prepared for getting his time wasted and that played a significant role in his defeat. For promoter Eddie Hearn, he only responded with a poignant quip: “I’m not sure he has come around yet.”

Francis Ngannou’s new WBC ranking has been confirmed after his loss to Anthony Joshua.

Francis Ngannou’s new WBC ranking has been revealed after he was knocked out by Anthony Joshua – and it’s bad news for the former UFC star.

Ngannou was taking part in his second competitive professional boxing bout against Joshua on March 8, after a narrow split decision defeat to Tyson Fury in October.

READ MORE ;Eddie Hearn responds to Francis Ngannou claiming he was tricked ahead of Anthony Joshua fight

As a result of that Fury bout, some pundits gave the French-Cameroonian fighter a chance of upsetting the odds against Joshua in Riyadh.

But the Brit showed his class with a dominant display, and knocked Ngannou down with a fearsome right hand in round one.

Joshua then floored Ngannou twice in the second round to win via knockout in incredible fashion, with his opponent briefly requiring oxygen after the fight before thankfully getting back to his feet.

Speaking on his Instagram account last week, Ngannou revealed he was ‘falling asleep and sweating’ in the locker room before the fight.

He also confirmed that he will return to boxing when the time is right.

But he will have to do so from a much lower starting point in terms of the rankings, with his new ranking now revealed after the Joshua defeat.

JUST IN ;Anthony Joshua ‘back’ and tipped to beat Tyson Fury after overcoming ‘mental block’ in Francis Ngannou fight

Ngannou is now ranked 24th in the WBC heavyweight rankings, dropping behind the likes of Joe Joyce, Dereck Chisora and Otto Wallin.

He was previously ranked as world number 10.

Despite his convincing victory in Saudi Arabia, Joshua had some classy words for Ngannou and his coach immediately after the knockout.

In a short conversation that was picked up by DAZN cameras, Joshua said: “You’re an inspiration. You’d beat a lot of people. Don’t leave boxing – don’t leave.

“Dewey [Cooper, Ngannou’s head coach] – don’t leave boxing, you know. This guy is the truth.

“If you [Ngannou] need anything, let me know. We’ll speak another time. I’d love to support your foundation – we’ll speak another time.”

Anthony Joshua has defeated Francis Ngannou via knockout after a stunning performance in Saudi Arabia.

Joshua knocked his opponent down with a fearsome right hand inside the first round as he looked to assert early dominance on proceedings.

The Watford-born fighter then landed another right hand in round two which clearly appeared to daze Ngannou.

The former UFC champion got back up, but was immediately sent straight back down to the canvas – for the final time in the fight.

Ngannou required oxygen after the knockout, but was able to sit up in his corner as he was attended to by medical staff, and eventually got up to his feet.

Joshua went into the bout, which took place in Riyadh, as the heavy favourite – although not many expected such a dominant display.

Ngannou suffered a split decision loss to Tyson Fury in his first professional fight in October, and was seen as a strong challenger to the former two-time heavyweight champion.

UPDATE ;Anthony Joshua Rises In Ring Magazine Heavyweight Rankings

And despite a fast start in the opening 30 seconds of the contest, the first of three knockdowns rocked Ngannou. While he made it to the end of the round, Joshua sensed his opportunity.