When Francis Ngannou stepped into the ring on October 28 in Saudi Arabia to take on WBC world heavyweight champion Tyson Fury, many did not expect the former UFC heavyweight star to give a good account of himself on his professional boxing debut.
For 10 rounds, Ngannou caused plenty of problems for Fury and even knocked him down in the third round which showed that Ngannou was not lacing up the gloves to make up the numbers in what is a red hot heavyweight division.
While Ngannou may have gone onto lose the fight on a split decision, his performance as made him one of the most lucrative names in boxing as a result of the interest he can generate and his next outing in the ring is a perfect example.
On March 8, Ngannou will be involved in his second fight as a professional boxing in Riyadh, but this time he will face two-time world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua which will be shown live on DAZN PPV.
This is a fight which has come together very quickly with Joshua originally set to face Deontay Wilder, but these plans were scuppered after Wilder lost to Joseph Parker on December 23. Now Joshua will look to stay active as he awaits a chance to face the winner of the undisputed clash between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk on February 17.
At first glance, some would think that a fight against Joshua is one which Ngannou has a better chance of winning as a result of the more conventional style which the former Olympian employs inside the ring.
However, in the eyes of Team Combat League president and Ngannou's trainer Dewey Cooper, he believes Joshua's style will make this contest a more dangerous one compared to the one with Fury.
"I think Anthony Joshua’s style is a bit more dangerous of a fight because Joshua does not have so many dimensions like a Tyson Fury, but he is more effective in his conventional way of boxing," Cooper told DAZN.
"In other words, he throws harder punches, he has more power, a sturdy long jab which he uses very well and he puts power shots behind it.
"If Joshua brings the same energy that he brought into his fight with Otto Wallin, and we think he will, it’s going to be a magnificent fight."
Cooper also explained why Ngannou will have to take a different approach for this upcoming fight with Joshua compared to Fury.
Against the WBC title holder, Ngannou had to rely on his mental energy to navigate his way through 10 rounds against who many argue is the number one heavyweight on the planet. However, for Ngannou's meeting with Joshua, Cooper believes it will come down as to which man can withstand the most punishment come fight night.
"In a fight like this, energy levels will definitely be a factor, but it will be a more of a physical energy level," Cooper explained.
"Against Tyson Fury, it was a psychological energy level because Fury has so many different styles. You have to be intelligent and have a really strong IQ as well, and great concentration. It’s like fighting three different men the way he switches styles.
"Anthony Joshua, what you see is what you get, you have got a strong man with a good basic style and he wants to hit you hard and get you out of there.
"I can only see an exciting fight because it’s a pleasing style from both guys, they have a lot of the same type of attributes."
Live on DAZN: Haney vs. Garcia on April 20. Click here for details.