Anthony Joshua Dropped Twice Before Brutal KO of Kristian Prenga

Anthony Joshua survived a major early scare before recovering to knock out Kristian Prenga in the second round of their heavyweight contest on Saturday night.

Joshua was dropped twice in the opening round by the powerful Albanian, who stunned the two-time heavyweight world champion with a right uppercut inside the first 20 seconds before sending him to the canvas again with another heavy right hand.

However, Prenga failed to capitalise on his remarkable start and allowed Joshua space to recover.

The British heavyweight returned for the second round with greater purpose, using his jab to control the distance before unleashing a powerful combination of hooks that sent Prenga crashing through the bottom rope.

After the victory, Joshua turned his attention to a potential showdown with Tyson Fury, who was not present at the event after choosing to return home following his own tune-up victory over Mariusz Wach in Thailand.

‘I can’t be stopped. I’m not going to be stopped, I’m not going to be denied,’ Joshua said after the fight.

He later sent a message to Fury, declaring: ‘I’m going to rip his heart out,’ before adding that he respected everything his fellow British heavyweight had achieved.

Joshua’s victory keeps alive hopes of a blockbuster fight with Fury, which has reportedly been pencilled in for November.