Anthony Joshua knocks out Kristian Prenga after worst round of his career

Welcome to Telegraph Sport’s live coverage of Anthony Joshua’s heavyweight clash with Kristian Prenga, taking place in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

The kingdom plays host to yet another major boxing event, and this is the second part of a weekend that serves as a build-up to a potentially huge match-up later this year.

Prenga’s 20 wins have come against pedestrian opposition, and if he wins tonight then it would be such an upset as to probably finish Joshua’s career as a real name in the sport.

Joshua, the former unified champion, has plenty of defeats to his name. Oleksandr Usyk, twice, as well as Daniel Dubois and Andy Ruiz Jnr.

Tonight should show us where he is. After his loss to Dubois in 2024 he did not fight again until December 2025, when he rearranged Jake Paul’s ability first to stand up, and second, to chew.

A win for Joshua tonight means that all eyes turn to the end of the year, when he is expected to finally meet Tyson Fury in the ring to settle their rivalry.

Now both are deposed champions, the interest has waned a tad, but it remains the biggest all-British clash that anybody could conceive.

Fury, for his part, had little trouble against Mariusz Wach last night, the 46-year-old journeyman who he fought in Thailand. While that was not broadcast live, the clips online hardly suggested it was a classic, but it was enough to keep Fury active as he maintained his focus and avoided his own banana skin.

Joshua now needs to show that he is capable of finishing a fight. If he struggles, he invites pressure for the next four or five months in the build-up to meeting Fury.