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Boxing fans have said the same thing after Jose Mourinho was spotted ringside in Riyadh before Anthony Joshua vs Francis Ngannou.

Joshua and Ngannou will do battle at around 11pm UK time in a fight billed as ‘Knockout Chaos’.

A host of high-profile names from across the sporting world are in attendance at the event, including Manny Pacquiao, Tyson Fury, and even Real Madrid and Brazil legend Ronaldo.

Mourinho, meanwhile, has been spotted sitting in the front rows of the venue alongside the chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority, Turki Alalshikh.

It has been a busy evening for Mourinho, who walked out with the trophy prior to the Egypt Cup final between Al Ahly and Zamalek – which also took place in Saudi Arabia.

He made a rapid journey across to the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh to take in the boxing action on what has been a highly-anticipated card.

But after seeing Mourinho and the reaction he received from those in attendance upon appearing on the big screen, plenty of boxing fans had the same complaint regarding the event as a whole.

One fan wrote: “Biggest cheer of the night so far was for Jose Mourinho. Cracking atmosphere…”

Another agreed: “Hahahaha only cheer of the night so far for Jose Mourinho.”

A third opined: “The atmosphere for boxing in Saudi is absolutely shocking.”

Mourinho is currently out of work after being sacked by Roma earlier this year.

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The Portuguese icon delivered a Europa Conference League title to Rome in 2022, and reached the Europa League final last season, but a challenging run of form around the turn of the year into 2024 proved to be his undoing.

He has admitted that he has received job offers since he departed the club, but has yet to accept one.

Mourinho has been linked with a return to Chelsea, and with the soon-to-be vacant role at Bayern Munich once Thomas Tuchel leaves at the end of the current season.

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You can watch the Joshua vs Ngannou fight live on DAZN here.

Fans have come up with a Tyson Fury theory after seeing Anthony Joshua knock out Francis Ngannou.

On Friday night, all eyes were on the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia as former heavyweight world champion Joshua took on ex-UFC star Ngannou.

Leading up to the fight, many people felt it would be a close fight after Ngannou took Fury all the way last October.

The Cameroonian felt he should’ve won after knocking Fury down but ultimately lost via decision.

Against AJ, Ngannou was floored in the first round and was eventually dispatched in devastating fashion during the second round.

Reacting on social media, one fan said: “This explains why Tyson Fury didn’t train for his fight against Ngannou.”

Another tweeted: “Anyone who thought AJ was losing last night should never watch sport again. Blatantly obvious Tyson Fury didn’t train a day for his Ngannou fight.”

A third fan added: “Tyson Fury did not train for that Francis fight, man.”

Someone else wrote: “All I can see is that Tyson Fury didn’t train for his fight. AJ saving the face of HW boxing.”

A fifth commented: “Pretty sure Tyson Fury didn’t train for Francis fight cause obviously Tyson is levels upon levels better than Joshua.”

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As reported by talkSPORT, Fury said after Joshua’s victory over Ngannou: “I’m sure Oleksandr Usyk will have something to say something about that. I had a s*** performance against Ngannou.

“AJ did absolutely fantastic and lit him up with a right hand. If he fights me after I beat Usyk twice then it will be a different game.”

Joshua said: “I’m going back to my cage and when they let me out, I’ll fight again.

“When I saw the fight with Tyson Fury I thought ‘I want some of that’. [Ngannou] is a great champion and this doesn’t take anything away from his capabilities.”

He added: “I told him not to leave boxing. He’s two fights in and he’s fought the best.”

Tyson Fury gave an honest reaction after witnessing Anthony Joshua’s devastating knockout victory over Francis Ngannou in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Fury fought Ngannou at the Kingdom Arena back in October and despite winning a close decision on the judges’ scorecards, produced a sluggish display inside the squared circle.

The WBC world heavyweight champion was knocked down by the debuting Cameroonian in the third round and many felt as though he did not deserve to win.

Ngannou returned to the ring for a second time against Joshua on Friday evening and there was optimism given the level of performance he churned in last time out.

But two-time world heavyweight champion Joshua put on a boxing clinic and got the job done in just two rounds.

Image: Getty

After two knockdowns, ‘AJ’ put the former UFC champion with a brutal right-hand that folded Ngannou.

He required medical treatment following on from the stoppage and was fortunately able to get to his feet.

Joshua moved to 28-3 professionally after a fourth win on the trot and made it clear afterwards that he wishes to finally fight Fury in what would arguably be the biggest bout in boxing history.

Fury, who has two bouts with Oleksandr Usyk scheduled for the undisputed heavyweight titles coming up, praised Joshua for his impressive win.

As per Michael Benson of talkSPORT, Fury told DAZN: “I’m sure Oleksandr Usyk will have something to say something about that. I had a s*** performance against Ngannou. AJ did absolutely fantastic and lit him up with a right hand. If he fights me after I beat Usyk twice then it will be a different game.”

Image: Getty

The contest was initially pencilled in for February 17 but a cut suffered by Fury in sparring led to it being postponed.

The fight has been rearranged for May 18 but will remain at the Kingdom Arena.

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Anthony Joshua issues response to ‘disrespectful’ Tyson Fury after he called him and Francis Ngannou ‘two sausages’ before their heavyweight bout

Knocking Ngannou down in the first round for the first time in his career, AJ proceeded to put the former UFC champion onto the canvas another two times in the second round.

His third knockdown was enough to stop Ngannou from getting back up as Joshua claimed a fourth consecutive victory in the ring.

Fury was spotted in the crowd applauding AJ’s brutal knockout, but Joshua has refused to talk about his foe.

Speaking to IFL TV, Joshua was asked about Fury’s reaction to his knockout and simply replied: ‘F*** Tyson Fury.’

Anthony Joshua knocked Francis Ngannou down three times in his impressive victory

Speaking after the fight, Joshua sent an X-rated message to Tyson Fury

When asked to expand on the reason for his hostile reply, Joshua said: ‘You know what it is? I don’t like trash talking people but I heard him say something like “I’m here to do commentary about these two sausages”.

‘That guy that I fought (Ngannou), that he fought, is an ex-UFC heavyweight champion. A phenomonal story. Someone who changed his life around.

‘It’s too disrespectful. Forget anything about him.’

It remains to be seen as what is next for AJ, but a fight against Fury is on the cards.

The heavyweight champion faces Oleksandr Usyk next, with the winner of the bought likely to take on Joshua.

Speaking after Joshua’s victory, Fury confirmed he would be interested in an all-British bout.

‘I had a s*** performance against Ngannou. AJ did absolutely fantastic and lit him up with a right hand,’ he said on Friday night.

‘If he fights me after I beat Usyk twice then it will be a different game.’

Tyson Fury boasted that it was ‘nine weeks until Usyk gets f***ing battered’ on a training run on Saturday morning.

The Gypsy King will face Oleksandr Usyk on May 18 as the heavyweight world seeks to elect a unified champion for the first time in 24 years.

Usyk will bring the WBA, WBO, IBF and IBO titles while Fury holds the WBC heavyweight crown – and there will be a new ‘undisupted’ belt up for grabs.

Fury has been chomping at the bit since the fight was postponed from its original date of February 17 after he suffered a nasty cut above his eye in training.

‘So today, it’s our nine-week anniversary until Usyk gets f***ing battered,’ Fury said in an Instagram video, trailed by fellow runners.

Tyson Fury out running today, training for the Oleksandr Usyk fight on May 18th: “Nine weeks until Usyk gets f***ing battered.”[🎥 @Tyson_Fury] pic.twitter.com/tzWpnZNDqX

— Michael Benson (@MichaelBensonn) March 16, 2024

Tyson Fury has claimed that it is ‘nine weeks until Usyk gets f***ing battered’ by him

The Gypsy King will face Usyk on May 18 in the first unified heavyweight title contest in 24 years

‘And we’re out on the front this morning, little team of us, and we’re going to jog about, I don’t know, eight, nine, ten miles.

‘Might even do a half-marathon today, who knows?

‘But the one thing I do know is it’s absolutely fantastic weather, nice and fresh, on the bay.

‘Come on!’

Fury and Usyk’s fight will be a historic moment for boxing and the crown jewel in Saudi Arabia’s growing boxing influence.

They will finally meet in the ring as part of Riyadh Season in Saudi Arabia to crown the first undisputed heavyweight champion of the four-belt era.

WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman has backed a new judging system for the undisputed heavyweight title clash to avoid controversial decisions which ‘will kill boxing’.

Both fighters are gearing up for what has the potential to be the biggest fight in recent times with a reported £100million purse on offer.

Usyk and Fury are unbeaten and will compete for a reported £100million purse

The fight was postponed after Fury suffered a gruesome cut above his right eye while sparring

Fury has said he wants to fight Usyk twice, leaving Anthony Joshua to try and fill the time before he will face his fellow Brit.

Usyk has a perfect record of 21 wins and no defeats with 14 knockouts.

Meanwhile, Fury 34 wins – 24 via knockouts – and one draw.

His credibility is unquestionable but the public perception of him took a slight knock with how quickly Joshua finished off Francis Ngannou.

AJ floored Ngannou down three times with a second-round knockout when they met earlier this month, while Fury hit the deck himself before only beating the former UFC champion on points last year.

Channique Sterling-Brown, who plays Dee-Dee Bailey in ITV’s Coronation Street, looks unrecognisable after losing 100lbs following years of being ‘obsessed’ with her weight

Coronation Street’s Channique Sterling-Brown has revealed the downside to her incredible weight loss journey in a heartfelt Instagram post.

The actress, who plays Dee-Dee Bailey on the ITV soap, has been candid about her glamorous lifestyle online and has recently been involved in a gripping storyline where her character fought for Roy Cropper’s release from prison for Lauren Bolton’s murder.

However, last month, it was revealed that her on-screen boyfriend Joel Deering (Callum Lill) was the real culprit behind Lauren’s death. Off-screen, the star has been focusing on her fitness, having recently completed the Manchester 10k marathon alongside her co-stars.

In her recent Instagram post, the 27-year-old actress proudly displayed her golden medal and opened up about her significant weight loss journey over the years. She admitted to losing 100lbs after years of being “obsessed” with her weight and trying various “diets, shakes and tablets”.

She also revealed that she took a break from social media to focus on her mental health and that the downside to her weight loss was “uncomfortable comments”.

The star has been candid about her glamorous lifestyle online ( 
Image:
Getty Images)

In her recent Instagram post, the 27-year-old actress proudly displayed her golden medal ( 
Image:
Instagram)
The TV personality went on to share a dramatic before and after photo with her 16,000 online followers. She described her spiral of self-loathing, she expressed: “Couple of years ago it got really bad, I was losing control. Hating yourself is a s**t way to live. I came off socials for over a month and when I came back, I unfollowed all the pages full of beautiful, unrealistic bodies,” reports the Daily Star.

She admitted how seeing these images would send her downwards, stating: “Consuming those images daily used to send me spiralling. Comparison’s a killer. Instead, I follow women who represented me more, in terms of shape, skills and skin colour.”

Instead, she chose to follow women who more accurately mirrored her own skin colour, shape, and abilities. It was this pivot in mindset that led to her success, as she started prioritising her health and fitness. The TV star confessed: “I stopped seeing the gym as punishment for being fat and started focusing on fitness. For the first time ever I started enjoying working out, my high school PE teacher would be shook.”

Her realisation of her weight loss came subtly. “I didn’t notice my weight loss until my clothes were a bit big. So then there’s this excitement of feeling fitter, new wardrobe (cos a b**ch loves to shop).”

However, as the weight began to drop, she was taken aback by the amount of praise she received from loved ones about her figure and not her accomplishments. “But then came the compliments,” she explained, adding: “Which weirdly made me so uncomfortable. Awkwardly smiling, when people gushed over me being thinner, not my 1st class degree.”

“Then bare anxiety, ‘If I put on weight is everyone gonna notice? ‘ It was like confirmation that all my toxic thoughts had been in the back of everyone else’s head all along.”

“When people compliment weight loss I know they mean no harm, but when it becomes the main focus of your achievements, it’s disheartening. Now I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t proud of myself, but that’s linked to being two years veggie, being healthier and my head being a happier place to be.”

“Not always of course, I still have my moments, things I’d change. But I’ve learnt to keep it moving, don’t let those negative thoughts fester or they will take control.”

The actor shared her newfound belief about modern beauty standards and explained how she has grown from this experience. Channique explained: “Changing how I see myself and unlearning the toxic beauty standards society feeds us, is the real glow up. I now realise the gal on the left is just as much of a bad b**ch as the gal on the right.”

“Let’s build each other up for more than just our dress size/ I always want to be known for my love, laughter and loudness, not the body they live in.”

Tyson Fury may face the prospect of having to fight to defend the WBC title, but is the opponent Anthony Joshua and is that the “English civil war” of his dreams?

According to plan, Tyson Fury will fight a classic title unification match with Oleksandr Usyk on May 18 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, after the February 17 match was postponed due to Fury tearing his eyelid. Fury currently holds the WBC belt, while Usyk holds the WBA, WBO, IBF and IBO belts.

It is almost certain that the Fury – Usyk match will have a “part 2” this year, because the contract between the two punches has a clause allowing the loser to trigger a rematch immediately afterward.

The head of the prestigious boxing organization WBC, Mauricio Sulaiman, announced that the agency “accepts the Fury – Usyk rematch”. Sulaiman said, WBC will wait for Fury – Usyk to fight both matches (if any) and then arrange the WBC title defense match for the new absolute champion of world heavyweight boxing. And the head of the WBC did not hide his desire to see it be a fight between Tyson Fury – Anthony Joshua.

“WBC accepts their (Fury – Usyk) request for a rematch. If there are no problems with contracts, or negotiations with promotional companies (promotions, boxer representatives), we will complete it.” Fully agree to let the winner of the Fury match – Usyk fight Anthony Joshua,” Mauricio Sulaiman confirmed.

Tyson Fury was present in Saudi Arabia to witness Anthony Joshua knock out Francis Ngannou last Saturday

As for Anthony Joshua, the former world champion has expressed his intention more than once to “fight to the end” with “his arch-compatriot” Tyson Fury. A week ago, Joshua knocked out Francis Ngannou after just 2 rounds. That was Joshua’s fourth consecutive victory and now this 34-year-old boxer is even more eager to regain the prestigious belts as well as the world No. 1 position he achieved twice in the past.

But in addition to Joshua, in case Tyson Fury retains the WBC title after his match with Usyk, this 35-year-old puncher is also likely to have to defend the title against another formidable opponent.

It is known that the puncher currently ranked 2nd in the WBC heavyweight rankings right behind Fury, Frank Sanchez, has been assigned to fight Agit Kabayel (ranked 4th). This will be a match where the winner will become the designated challenger for the title against the boxer holding the WBC title.

Frank Sanchez is ranked 2nd in the WBC heavyweight rankings and has animpressive undefeated record

Frank Sanchez, 31 years old, holds the WBC Americas title with an impressive record of 24 wins, including 17 wins by knockout. The last time Frank Sanchez entered the ring was at the “Day of Reckoning” event on Christmas 2023, when Joshua also fought Otto Wallin. In that match, Sanchez technically knocked out Junior Fa in round 7.

Agit Kabayel is also in very good form with a series of 24 unbeaten matches, of which he won 16 matches by knockout. The 31-year-old German boxer also fought at the “Day of Reckoning” event nearly 3 months ago and won by technical knockout over Makhmudov in the 4th round, thereby winning the WBC North American title and the WBA Intercontinental title.

Tyson Fury‘s body transformation ahead of his undisputed fight with Oleksandr Usyk has left fans in disbelief.

The Gypsy King looks as ripped as ever with just under two months until his bout with the Ukrainian.

The heavyweight world will seek to elect a unified champion for the first time in 24 years on May 18, with a reported £100million purse up for grabs.

Boxing followers believe Fury is taking his fight with Usyk much more seriously after he scraped through his fight with Francis Ngannou, winning via split decision after being knocked down.

His long-time sparring partner Martin Bakole claimed that Fury didn’t prepare properly for his fight with Ngannou, telling IFL TV: ‘Tyson was not 100 per cent focused in the gym.’

Tyson Fury’s incredible body transformation ahead of the Oleksandr Usyk fight has been revealed

His physique is radically different to when he fought Francis Ngannou back in October

Usyk himself suggested that Fury didn’t take the fight seriously, asking: ‘Was he playing around trying to fool me?’

However, Fury appears to have stepped up the intensity of his training and posted a video at the weekend promising that he would ‘f***ing batter’ his undefeated opponent.

In an exclusive chat with Mail Sport last year, Fury said: ‘I would love to have a good body. But, I don’t have any hope of having a good body.

‘I am fat now, I was fat as a baby and I will be fat on my death bed. We’re all fat. Hughie is fat, Shane’s fat, my dad’s fat and even my mum’s fat. I hope she’s not watching this. But, we’re a fat family.’

The Brit doesn’t appear to have even a spare ounce on his muscular physique and fans have been left amazed by his transformation.

‘Tyson looks hungrier than ever to prove himself after that Ngannou fight. We’re about to see another historic Fury performance,’ one wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

‘Never seen Tyson that cut,’ said another.

‘That doesn’t even look like the same person,’ one said, adding a shocked face emoji for emphasis.

Even this update from early February shows Fury’s body looking far more toned than it had previously

Fury started his dedicated training camp for the Usyk fight earlier this week

Many think Fury didn’t prepare for the Ngannou fight properly, especially after his long-time sparring partner Martin Bakole said so

Fans have been raving about Fury’s attitude and new physique ahead of the Saudi Arabian bout

‘Tyson Fury over here looking like The Rock,’ another commented.

‘It’s obvious he didn’t take Ngannou seriously,’ one said after seeing his transfromation.

‘Ngannou actually knocked sense into him,’ another wrote.

The clash between Usyk and Fury promises to be one of the biggest in memory.

Usyk will bring the WBA, WBO, IBF and IBO titles while Fury holds the WBC heavyweight crown – and there will be a new ‘undisupted’ belt up for grabs.

They will meet in the ring as part of Riyadh Season in Saudi Arabia to crown the first undisputed heavyweight champion of the four-belt era.

Fury has been chomping at the bit since the fight was postponed from its original date of February 17 after he suffered a nasty cut above his eye in training.

He has 34 wins – 24 via knockouts – and one draw on his ledger.

Meanwhile, Usyk has a perfect record of 21 wins and no defeats with 14 knockouts