Ricky Hatton admits Anthony Joshua ‘worry’ in Francis Ngannou fight prediction

Ricky Hatton has delivered his verdict on the heavyweight clash between Anthony Joshua and Francis Ngannou.

The main event of ‘Knockout Chaos’ will take place on Friday night in Riyadh and will have major ramifications for the heavyweight division. ‘AJ’ enjoyed a redemptive stoppage victory over highly-ranked contender Otto Wallin in December to put himself firmly back on track to regain his world titles.

In October, former UFC champion Ngannou shocked the sporting world by knocking down Tyson Fury in his professional boxing debut, fighting to a controversial split decision defeat. It sets up an intriguing contest but boxing legend Ricky Hatton believes Joshua will learn from Fury’s mistakes.

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“AJ has come back strongly. His performances have been getting better and better all the time. I think he’s going to shine against Ngannou,” Hatton told Instant Casinos.

“I think Fury took Ngannou lightly, he didn’t come in in the best of shape. Tyson was very easy to hit because he didn’t come in as trim as he normally does, so his upper body movement wasn’t good and Ngannou was able to nail him. I think this is a fight where AJ can shine. He does have great boxing ability, he’s won an Olympic gold medal and he’s a two-time heavyweight champion for a reason.”

Ngannou faces an uphill battle to repeat the remarkable performance he produced against Fury as the 37-year-old is no longer an unknown quantity in the boxing ring. Joshua looked to be getting back to his best against Wallin, though Hatton refused to rule out Ngannou posing a serious threat to the