Joshua faces former UFC heavyweight champion Ngannou in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in seven days time.
Francis Ngannou continues his quest for glory in professional boxing when he takes on two-time world champion Anthony Joshua in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia next week.
The Cameroon star will step into the boxing ring for just a second time, but comes into the fight with huge credit in the bank from his display against WBC heavyweight title holder Tyson Fury last year. The 37-year-old lost to the "Gypsy King" on a controversial points decision, despite having his man down in the third round.
But Ngannou is confident that he can do the job inside the distance this time, as he prepares to do battle with 2012 Olympic gold medalist Joshua. Since losing his three world championship belts in his two bouts with Oleksandr Usyk, AJ has bounced back with three consecutive victories, claiming an impressive fifth round stoppage of Otto Wallin on the "Day of Reckoning" bill in Riyadh back in December.
With Fury facing Usyk in May for the undisputed heavyweight crown, it was hoped that Joshua's next contest would be against long-time rival Deontay Wilder, but following the American's shock defeat to Joseph Parker, a match-up with newly-turned boxer Ngannou has quickly been arranged.
Saudi royal adviser and the Chairman of General Authority for Entertainment Turki Alalshikh has came up with the funds to stage the massive event, which has been billed with the title "Knockout Chaos".
The card is stacked with some other exciting contests, with fellow heavyweight contender Parker facing Chinese star Zhilei Zhang, Rey Vargas and Brit Nick Ball fight for the Vargas' WBC featherweight title and Israil Madrimov takes on Magomed Kurbanov for the vacant WBA super welterweight belt.
Alalshikh has vowed that the winner of the bout will go on to share the ring with the victor of Fury and Usyk's highly anticipated fight, so with so much on the line, we can expect fireworks in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia next week.
Here are all the key details ahead of Joshua's massive showdown with former UFC star Ngannou in just seven days time.
When is Joshua v Ngannou?
Joshua v Ngannou takes place on Friday, March 8 at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with the event getting underway at 4pm UK time. Mega fights almost exclusively take place on a Saturday so fights fans across social media have been caught on the hop.
How can I watch the fight?
You can watch Joshua v Ngannou through Sky Sports Box Office or on the DAZN streaming platform. The DAZN UK PPV (pay-per-view) price will be £19.99 and this includes a free one month DAZN subscription - you can get the limited time deal by clicking here.
DAZN is available on your web browser and has apps available for all of the following platforms: Apple TV, Chromecast, Amazon Fire TV, Amazon Fire Stick, Amazon Fire Tablet, Android Phone & Tablet, iPhone & iPad, Android TV, LG, Smart TV, Panasonic Smart TV, Samsung Smart TV, Sony Smart TV, SmartCast, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5 and Roku.
Who else is on the card?
As well as Joshua's meeting with Ngannou, there are also nine other fights on the bill.
- Zhilei Zhang vs Joseph Parker; for Zhang's WBO interim heavyweight title
- Rey Vargas vs Nick Ball; for Vargas' WBC featherweight title
- Israil Madrimov vs. Magomed Kurbanov; For the vacant WBA super welterweight title
- Gavin Gwynne vs. Mark Chamberlain; Lightweight
- Justis Huni vs. Kevin Lerena; Heavyweight
- Jack McGann vs Louis Green; Super welterweight
- Roman Fury vs. TBA; Cruiserweight
- Ziyad Almaayouf vs Christian Loopes Flores; Super lightweight
- Andrii Novytskyi vs. Juan Torres; Heavyweight