Amir Khan has expressed a belief that Anthony Joshua is easier to hit than Tyson Fury ahead of his showdown with Francis Ngannou next month.
AJ and Ngannou are due to meet in Saudi Arabia on March 8, with the pair both having points to prove.
Joshua will be out to continue his impressive form, having won all three of his bouts since his defeat to Oleksandr Usyk in 2021.
Yet Ngannou is eager to show he belongs at this level having performed admirably during his fight with Fury at the end of October.
Former boxing star Amir Khan has opened up on Anthony Joshua ahead of his showdown with Francis Ngannou in Saudi Arabia
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Joshua, given his years of boxing experience, is the favourite to win the battle in the Middle East.
But while Khan rates the 34-year-old highly, he does believe Ngannou's power could be too much for his fellow Briton to handle.
“I think Joshua is a very smart fighter," he told All Out Fighting.
"It will still be a hard fight because you’ve got to understand, Ngannou’s got more confidence going into this fight and he thinks he can hurt, and knock out Joshua.
“He says that Joshua’s got a weak chin, so he’s going to go for that really, and try to throw those big bombs.
"If he connects, who knows what might happen.
"One thing about the heavyweight division is that if one punch lands it can change a fight.
“[Tyson Fury’s] one hard fighter to hit clean. So many top guys have tried to knock him out, knock him down or hurt him.
"Not to sound disrespectful; I like Joshua, I think he’s a great fighter but I think he’s easier to hit than Fury.
“The way people look at boxing now, after that fight with Fury, is that boxers are a little bit weaker than MMA fighters.
"This is where Joshua needs to show them that boxer’s are not weaker; boxer’s are better and stronger.”
Ngannou's power is something else.
The 37-year-old floored Fury during their fight back in October, shocking millions around the world in the process.
But Joshua's trainer, Ben Davison, feels AJ can't underestimate his opponent as their seismic clash edges closer.
"Treat him with respect," he told Sky Sports.
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Anthony Joshua has been warned about the power of Francis Ngannou ahead of their boxing bout in the Middle East
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"Let's not lose sight of it. He had a split-decision loss to Tyson.
"Straightaway that puts him up among people that have really struggled with Tyson."
He continued: "He showed composure, he showed patience, which are all things which become a threat when you can punch like that.
"I think it's easier to deal with a puncher when they're a little bit reckless, a bit gung ho.
"They're the novicey side of his game that we thought we would see - a lack of patience, a lack of composure.
Anthony Joshua is a fighter back to his best ahead of his fight with Francis Ngannou
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"But those are things that he's shown. So we're treating him like a world-class heavyweight.
"You have got the MMA. A lot of his knockouts have come from him standing up and his punches etc.
"So there is a bit to look at in the MMA as well and obviously the 10-round fight with Tyson.
"The 10-round fight against Tyson's a big asset to us, I feel."
