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    Eddie Hearn claimed Francis Ngannou couldn’t even win a regional belt, now he’s about to get him fighting Anthony Joshua

    ONE must assume Eddie Hearn has ­forgotten ridiculing Francis Ngannou before the martial arts star fought Tyson Fury.Hearn was at his most scathing when he said: “There is no way in the world that Francis Ngannou could win even a Southern Area title.
    Eddie Hearn may have to eat his words when it comes to Francis NgannouCredit: Sportsfile
    Ngannou impressed when he shook up Tyson Fury during their bout last yearCredit: Getty
    Anthony Joshua is set to fight Ngannou nextCredit: Getty
    “Johnny Fisher is our Southern Area champion. Fisher v Ngannou is a total mismatch. Fisher would have him out of there in a round.”
    That was a pretty damning assessment of Ngannou’s credentials as he was about to take on the unbeaten WBC world champion.
    But be prepared for Hearn – Anthony Joshua’s promoter – to complete a spectacular screeching U-turn on Monday.
    That’s when he will reveal the March date and details of Joshua’s clash with Ngannou in Riyadh.
    READ MORE BOXING NEWS
    Hearn has obviously come to the conclusion that Ngannou, after flooring Fury before narrowly losing his only fight under Queensberry rules on October 28, is world championship material.
    Three weeks ago Hearn was claiming AJ is the best heavyweight in the world.
    It will be fascinating to hear Fast Eddie explain how Ngannou – who he didn’t consider good enough to meet ten-fight novice Fisher – is now worthy to take on the so-called world No 1.
    The Saudis aren’t really interested in boxing.
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    Liverpool’s Callum Smith challenges Artur Beterbiev for his WBC, IBF and WBO world light-heavyweight titles in Quebec City tomorrow – the Sheikhs probably have never heard of either of them.
    But they are happy to throw millions at Ngannou and Joshua because it will generate global TV to further their relentless sportswashing enterprise.
    Putting my cynicism to one side, British boxing can look ahead to the next 12 months with optimism because we are blessed with some very talented youngsters.
    Two from Asian backgrounds on their way to being world class are Adam Azim and Hamzah Sheeraz.
    Azim, 21, is already the European super-lightweight champion.
    Sheeraz, 24, will have his first severe test at light-middleweight as he meets tough Welshman Liam Williams on February 10.
    But before we sing Auld Lang Syne again, the name Moses Itauma should be on everyone’s lips.
    Mighty Moses is only just 19 but the 17-stone plus kid has won all his seven fights.
    By late spring I wouldn’t be surprised if Frank Warren’s latest prodigy is headlining at York Hall and fighting for his first title – the English heavyweight crown held by Solomon Dacres.
    Itauma’s ambition is to beat Mike Tyson’s record of being world heavyweight champ at 20 years and 145 days.
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    Realistically, there’s a very slim chance of that  – the lad from Chatham would have to be wearing one of the belts by May 21 next year.
    Facially, Moses bears a remarkable resemblance to the young Marlon Brando. There’s every chance he is going to be much more than just a contender.
    Adam Azim is already the European super-lightweight champion.Credit: PA
    Hamzah Sheeraz has also been impressingCredit: Richard Pelham / The Sun
    Moses Itauma is a fighter that everyone should be talking aboutCredit: Richard Pelham / The Sun More

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    Boxing ring girl Apollonia Llewellyn puts on busty display in pink bikini as fans say ‘it doesn’t get any better’

    APOLLONIA LLEWELLYN delighted fans with her latest Instagram post.The former boxing ring girl has racked up more than 577,000 followers on the social media platform.
    Apollonia Llewellyn wore a pink bikini in her latest Instagram postCredit: INSTAGRAM
    The influencer has 577,000 Instagram followersCredit: Instagram @apolloniallewellyn
    The 23-year-old rose to fame with her performances around the ring.
    And now she regularly posts pictures online in racy outfits.
    In her most recent snap on Instagram, the influencer flaunted her body in a pink bikini while standing in a swimming pool.
    Apollonia captioned the revealing image: “Daily dip.”
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    And fans flooded the comments section with messages of support for the model.
    One said: “Doesn’t get any better.”
    Another wrote: “Beautiful and perfect.”
    A third added: “What a richness of a beautiful woman.”
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    A fourth typed: “Absolutely gorgeous.”
    A fifth replied: “Body goals.”
    And a final user simply commented: “Gorgeous.”
    Apollonia risked an Instagram ban just 24 hours earlier with a photo in blue lingerie.
    Before that, she braved the Lake District snow in a skimpy top, enjoyed a spa trip in Paris and rocked a Mrs Santa Claus Christmas outfit.
    Apollonia also enjoyed a holiday to New York with her footballer boyfriend Jai Rowe.
    She recently braved the Lake District snowCredit: Instagram
    Apollonia and boyfriend Jai Rowe enjoyed a holiday in New YorkCredit: Instagram @apolloniallewellyn
    The glamorous model rose to fame from being a ring girlCredit: Instagram @apolloniallewellyn
    She regularly flaunts her body on her social media snapsCredit: Instagram @apolloniallewellyn More

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    Misfits Boxing 12: UK start time, live stream, TV channel and full card as Elle Brooke faces AJ Bunker in huge rematch

    MISFITS Boxing 12 gets underway NEXT SATURDAY – and there are some huge names on the bill.The card will see the rematch of AJ Bunker and Elle Brooke as Brooke came out on top the last time the two went head-to-head in the ring.
    AJ Bunker vs Elle Brooke rematch is expected to be a thrilling boutCredit: Instagram @thedumbledong
    The ex-Love Island star will be out for revenge after she endured a defeat in July, losing by way of decision with the bout scored at 40-36 in favour of Brooke.
    Misfits Boxing 12 will be hosted in Leeds’ First Direct Arena with the capacity being approximately 13,000.
    CEO KSI is hoping for a Leeds sell-out in the first Misifts boxing event of the year.
    Internet personality Ed Matthews will be the main event of the card as he takes on a mystery opponent.
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    Last time out, Matthews beat fellow influencer boxer Swarmz with just TWO days notice in a 17-second knockout on the huge Misfits Prime card.
    When is Misfits Boxing 12?

    Misifts Boxing 12 will commence on Saturday, January 20.
    The card is expected to get underway at 7pm GMT.
    The First Direct Arena in Leeds will host.

    What channel is it on and can it be live streamed?

    Misfits Boxing 12 main card will be shown LIVE on DAZN.
    DAZN customers can live stream all the action via the DAZN app/website.
    You can subscribe to DAZN in the UK for £9.99-a-month, which commits you to an entire year of action.
    A flexible pass, worth £19.99-a-month, is also available, and you can cancel anytime.
    You can also pay £99.99 for the year upfront, and this is the lowest cost option.

    Misfits Boxing 12 FULL card
    The full card for Misfits Boxing 12 is below:
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    Ed Matthews vs. Mystery Opponent
    AJ Bunker vs. Elle Brooke; For Bunker’s Misfits Boxing female middleweight title
    Ashley Raksu vs. OJ Rose
    Tristan Hamm vs. Not Logan Paul
    Small Spartan J vs. Fox The G
    Ben Williams vs. Fes Batista
    Chase DeMoor vs. Minikon
    Myles Raksu vs. DTG
    Most Wanted vs. Joey Knight More

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    I’m Anthony Joshua’s personal chef – he loves my 5,500-calorie diet plan but we disagree on lavish dish

    ANTHONY JOSHUA consumes 5,500 calories a day during fight training camps.He is served an array of meals and snacks by his personal chef tailored to his every need.
    Anthony Joshua eats up to 5,500 calories a dayCredit: Getty
    His personal chef Wesley Cannonier caters to his every need
    But he also enjoys some home comforts and staple foods his mum used to make.
    Wesley Cannonier is AJ’s personal chef and he is tasked with fuelling the heavyweight during his training camps.
    He told Matchroom all the food Joshua consumes is organic and sourced locally, often from farmers.
    Joshua, 34, is fed steaks, potatoes and plenty of greens but he is also allowed treats – including coconut bread, carrot cake and muffins, as long as they are reduced sugar.
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    A normal day for the Brit consists of five meals – breakfast, a snack, then lunch followed by more snacks, often an eggshake including nuts, and dinner in the evening.
    AJ’s go-to breakfast is scrambled eggs with scotch bonnet chilli and all-purpose seasoning – just how his mum used to make growing up.
    Cannonier has to cater to Joshua’s every need – even when he disagrees with how a dish should be cooked.
    AJ prefers his steak cooked medium-well while Cannonier, who has worked in Michelin-starred restaurants, likes medium-rare.
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    Despite the difference in agreement it has proved a productive partnership, with Joshua battering Otto Wallin in five rounds following his training camp at the end of last year.
    Next up for the former champion is a showdown with Francis Ngannou.
    If he wins that contest Joshua could finally fight Tyson Fury – a match-up Eddie Hearn predicts he will come out on top in. More

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    Elle Brooke transforms into ‘super s***’ as she calls out ‘Love Island reject’ and warns ‘I’m coming for the belt’

    ELLE BROOKE has warned “Love Island reject” AJ Bunker she is coming for her belt in a bizarre clip.OnlyFans star Elle shared a short video across her social media channels in which she portrays a satirical version of Superman called super s***.
    Elle Brooke transformed into super s*** in a bizarre clipCredit: X @holdthatelle
    Elle warned AJ Bunker she is coming for her Misfits middleweight championshipCredit: X @holdthatelle
    Elle will face AJ this month in the upcoming Misfits editionCredit: X @holdthatelle
    Elle’s awkward clip received mixed reviews on social mediaCredit: X @holdthatelle
    The 25-year-old is seen lounging in a sofa when another character portraying another parody role similar to James Bond’s M walks in to discuss the super hero’s next mission.
    The Brit is offered the chance to prevent nuclear disaster and save an orphanage but she snubs both ideas.
    The amateur boxer is then given the opportunity to finish a “Love Island reject” who is “trying to stay relevant”.
    Elle then said: “The darkest scourge on our society. Let’s go.”
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    The clip received mixed reviews with some of her die-hard fans seeing the humour.
    One fan tweeted: “AWESOME!! We love your sense of humour, so spot on for today’s social media obsessions.
    SuperS**g (or SuperS**t for North Americans here) to the rescue!!”
    Another posted: “This one’s good.”
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    And that one wrote: “I like this one too.”
    But there were also some who couldn’t get past the whole awkwardness.
    This user tweeted: “You’re so cringe.”
    That one said: “Absolute beg.”
    And a third stated: “I can’t even.”
    AJ will defend the Misfits middleweight championship against Elle this month in Leeds.
    Their first fight in July was full of bad blood and saw Elle come out on top with the judges scoring the bout 40-36 in her favour.
    Inside Elle’s glamorous life as a boxer and OnlyFans star…
    Elle traded in OnlyFans for boxingCredit: PA
    Elle boasts 843k followersCredit: Instagram @thedumbledong
    She also showed fans a red outfitCredit: Instagram @thedumbledong
    Elle always embraces the seasons traditionsCredit: Instagram @thedumbledong

    She also like to pose in laceCredit: Instagram @thedumbledong
    She recently posed in a pink lingerieCredit: Instagram / @thedumbledong
    And also embraced yellowCredit: Instagram @thedumbledong
    The social media sensation posed with a championship beltCredit: Instagram / @thedumbledong
    Elle recently visited the USCredit: Instagram @thedumbledong
    Including visiting TexasCredit: https://www.instagram.com/thedumbledong/
    The amateur boxer has posed for several photoshootsCredit: instagram More

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    Kell Brook hints at stunning boxing comeback TWO YEARS after retiring with British superfight on cards if money is right

    KELL BROOK has hinted at a sensational return to the ring – less than two years after hanging up his gloves.The former IBF welterweight champion brought the curtain down on his career in May 2022, two months after sensationally stopping Amir Khan in their grudge match.
    Kell Brook hung up his gloves after stopping Amir Khan nearly two years agoCredit: RICHARD PELHAM
    Brook has flirted with coming out of retirement to face Conor BennCredit: Getty
    Special K has now set his sights on a showdown with Chris Eubank JrCredit: GETTY
    Brook, 37, has flirted with the prospect of returning to the ring over the last 12 months and a clash with Conor Benn.
    But a Battle of Britain with Chris Eubank Jr is now taking the fancy of the Sheffield slugger, so long as the money is right.
    He told LuckyBlock.com: “Chris Eubank Jr would be in the driving seat for me if I did come back because of the drug allegation hanging over Conor Benn’s head.
    “He’s not sanctioned by the British Boxing Board of Control, so he’s a little bit out of the picture.
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    “But obviously the two names there, Eubank and Benn, could both excite me enough to get me back in the ring.
    “If the correct figures were mentioned I could be tempted to put the pipe and slippers away and get the gloves back on.
    “Everywhere I go people are saying they want me out of retirement and that boxing’s dead without me.
    “Apart from me fighting Amir Khan, what fights have really got people excited recently?”
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    Kell Brook wants a big wad of cash to come out of retirementCredit: RICHAD PELHAM
    Brook nearly came to blows with Benn at Katie Taylor’s first clash with Chantelle Cameron in Dublin in May.
    But Special K has no ill will towards the son of British boxing great Nigel, saying: “I think deep down Benn has got respect for me.
    “But he’s a young fighter and got a bit carried away with himself, wanting to be in the limelight.
    “A lot of things have happened in his life over the past couple of years, with these drug allegations and before that he was a pay-per-view fighter.
    “He gave me a bit of a push in Dublin.
    “He wants to fight, he wants the big fights, but he’s a young kid and he’s got this problem hanging over his head now.
    “We’ll see what happens with the appeal and if he gets his licence. I think it’ll always be a cloud over him.” More

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    Francis Ngannou launches stinging attack on Tyson Fury over next fight and fumes ‘I don’t give a s***’

    FRANCIS NGANNOU insists Tyson Fury owes him a rematch – and he’s willing to forego a crack at undisputed glory to get it.The former UFC heavyweight champ embarrassed The Gypsy King in his professional boxing debut last October, dropping him in the third round of their Saudi showdown.
    Francis Ngannou locked horns with Tyson Fury last OctoberCredit: REUTERS
    The former UFC champ shocked the world by dropping and going the distance with FuryCredit: Getty
    Ngannou insists Fury ‘owes’ him a rematchCredit: REUTERS
    Fury eked out a controversial split decision victory over the boxing novice to preserve next month’s undisputed heavyweight title fight with Oleksandr Usyk.
    Ngannou is expected to be ringside for the historic clash but won’t pursue former pound-for-pound Usyk if he hands the Brit his first professional loss
    The MMA man-mountain told TMZ: “I’m not looking for the winner of Tyson Fury [and Usyk]. “I’m looking for Tyson.
    “Tyson owes me a fight. I don’t give a s*** about the winner of Usyk and Tyson.
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    “I’m coming after Tyson. Win or lose, I want Tyson.”
    Ngannou, 37, will return to the ring in March for a lucrative Saudi showdown with former two-time heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua
    The Cameroonian clubber is relishing the Riyadh rumble but admits the element of surprise won’t be in his favour come fight night.
    He said: “He’s seen me box already, so he knows a little bit what is coming after.
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    ANTHONY JOSHUA VS FRANCIS NGANNOU: ALL THE DETAILS YOU NEED AHEAD OF HUGE CROSSOVER BOUT
    “Unlike Tyson Fury, that was out of the blue, didn’t know what to expect. Joshua kind of knows what to expect.
    “I think this time I need to put it up even more to get the job done.”
    That being said, the Professional Fighters League pounder believes he has what it takes to emphatically thwart AJ’s hopes of becoming a three-time heavyweight champion.
    During an appearance on The MMA Hour, he said: “Eddie [Hearn] is a promoter, that’s a routine for him.
    “He says the same thing all the time, just not about Francis Ngannou but somebody else.
    “That’s just what he does. The date is set.
    “It’s two months from now, and if any of them think they’re going to have easy money, that’s too bad for them.
    “If AJ takes the punch that Fury took, I don’t guarantee that he’s standing up.
    “I’ve heard that he doesn’t have a chin. I’m going to find out.” More

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    Anthony Joshua given clear path to becoming three-time world champion after Deontay Wilder blew $100m super-fight

    ANTHONY JOSHUA’s path to becoming a three-time heavyweight champion has become a little bit clearer.The former two-time unified heavyweight king got his career back on track last year with consecutive wins over Jermaine Franklin, Robert Helenius and Otto Wallin.
    Anthony Joshua got his career back on track last year with three wins on the bounceCredit: MATCHROOM BOXING
    AJ took apart Otto Wallin in Saudi Arabia last DecemberCredit: GETTY
    AJ could find himself fighting for the IBF heavyweight title later this yearCredit: GETTY
    And he could soon get his hands back on the belt he first claimed eight years ago.
    That’s because the winner of Tyson Fury’s eagerly-undisputed heavyweight title fight with Oleksandr Usyk will be STRIPPED of the IBF title shortly after next month’s Saudi showdown.
    Croatian clubber Filip Hrgovic is currently the mandatory challenger for the belt and will make up one-half of the fight for the vacant title.
    And Joshua will make up the other half as he’s currently the No.3 ranked heavyweight in the IBF’s rankings.
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    Swedish slugger Wallin was ranked at No.2 prior to losing his clash with AJ last month but has slipped to ninth in the list after his fifth-round TKO loss.
    That No.2 position, however, is now vacant – meaning Hrgovic will be ordered to face the third-ranked heavyweight should the IBF indeed strip the winner of Fury vs Usyk.
    And currently sitting in the No.3 slot is the golden boy of British boxing Joshua, who is still nursing the pain of Deontay Wilder blowing their £100million two-fight deal.
    All signs appear to point to a title tilt for AJ later this year, although the IBF sanctioning a new eliminator to fill the No.2 spot could scupper that.
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    ANTHONY JOSHUA VS FRANCIS NGANNOU: ALL THE DETAILS YOU NEED AHEAD OF HUGE CROSSOVER BOUT
    Joshua, 34, is set to return to the ring in March for a crossover clash with former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou.
    Ngannou shocked the world with his display against Fury last October, cutting and dropping The Gypsy King in a narrow split decision defeat.
    And he’s planning to turn in a similarly stunning performance in his Riyadh rumble with AJ.
    During an appearance on The MMA Hour, The Predator said: “If AJ takes the punch that Fury took, I don’t guarantee that he’s standing up.
    “I’ve heard that he doesn’t have a chin. I’m going to find out.”
    Responding to Eddie Hearn’s claim that he’ll be ‘easy work’ for AJ, Ngannou said: “Eddie is a promoter, that’s a routine for him.
    “He says the same thing all the time, just not about Francis Ngannou but somebody else.
    “That’s just what he does. The date is set.
    “It’s two months from now, and if any of them think they’re going to have easy money, that’s too bad for them.”
    Anthony Joshua will throw down with former UFC heavyweight champ Francis NgannouCredit: GETTY More