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Anthony Joshua survived two knockdowns by Albania’s Kristian Prenga before winning the fight in the second round.
Published on 26 Jul 2026
Former world champion Anthony Joshua recovered from two knocks to knock out Kristian Prenga in the second round of their heavyweight title fight in Saudi Arabia.
The fight in Jeddah on Saturday was seen as the British boxer’s final stage before his long-awaited showdown against rival Tyson Fury.
It also marked his return to the ring for the first time since a horrific car accident in Nigeria in December, in which Joshua lost two of his best friends and was injured.
Back in the ring, Joshua was rocked with a top 30 seconds in. He won but looked very shaken.
Prenga then took Joshua down again, but the former heavyweight champion got up before the count ended and survived until the bell of the first round.
A quick finish to the fight was expected, but no one thought it would be Prenga’s.
In the second round, Joshua threw a punch and finished Prenga with a right hook, sending the Albanian under the ropes.
The change shocked even heavyweight king Oleksandr Usyk, whose face was caught by TV cameras looking away.
The return resulted in the Battle of Britain between Joshua and Fury.
Joshua’s manager Eddie Hearn has said that his fighter and Fury will sign a contract for the first meeting later this year, but according to their meeting this weekend.
“I hope the fans get something good,” Joshua told the crowd about the fight with Fury following Prenga’s win.
Fury played his part Retiring this year and, on Friday, forced 46-year-old Polish Mariusz Wach to retire in seven rounds in Pattaya, Thailand.
Joshua nearly destroyed his portion of the contract he was asked to pay before showing his fighting spirit.
Prenga brought a 20-1 fight record and 20 KOs to the match with Joshua and looked all over the artist.
Joshua, fighting for the first time since surviving the car accident that killed his friends Sina Ghami and Latif ‘Latz’ Ayodele, accepted them after improving his fight record to 30-4 (27 KOs).
“It’s more than a punch,” Joshua said of his knockout punch. That was the spirit. That was Latz and Sina. That was a family. You know what I mean? It hurts to even talk about it.
“He (Prenga) tested me well, but this is what professionals do: we get up. We get knocked down and get back up. That’s life; that’s the language of life.”
