Matchroom CEO talks about Simon Jordan’s theory on Anthony Joshua vs Kristian Prenga fight
Matchroom Boxing CEO Frank Smith has pushed back against Simon Jordan’s comment that something felt ‘off’ about Anthony Joshua’s comeback fight.
On Saturday night, Joshua returned to the ring after a tough time, facing Albania’s Kristian Prenga in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. This was Joshua’s first fight since a serious car crash in Nigeria left him with minor injuries and sadly took the lives of two close friends, Kevin Latif Ayodele and Sina Ghami.
Just the night before, Joshua’s British rival, Tyson Fury, had won a charity fight in Thailand. So, there was plenty of pressure on Joshua to make a strong statement and set up a big match with Fury later this year.
The fight got off to a rocky start when Joshua was knocked down twice in the first round by Prenga’s powerful punches. But Joshua bounced back in the second round with a fierce combination that sent Prenga out of the ring and ended the fight.
Many fans loved seeing Joshua fight through the tough moments and finish strong, but some wondered if the early knockdowns were part of a plan to build drama before facing Fury.
One big skeptic was boxing journalist Simon Jordan, who shared his doubts on social media. He wrote, “Not having that Anthony Joshua fight. Dropped twice and sets the tempo, how’s that? Prenga totally different in second round. Something not quite right, all designed to rinse maximum amount of money…”
Others have also suggested Joshua might have purposely slowed down early on to catch Fury off guard, a strategy that heavyweight star Oleksandr Usyk has used before. Usyk even helped train Joshua for this comeback.
But no matter the theories, Matchroom Boxing’s CEO Frank Smith strongly denied them. Speaking on The Stomping Ground, Smith said, “Simon does talk some waffle, doesn’t he? Suggesting the fight was fixed is a wild accusation. Everyone’s pretty much saying the same thing: just ignore Simon. He’s the king of stirring things up. I don’t buy into it at all.”
As for when Joshua and Fury will meet in the ring, no official date is set yet. Both fighters will take some time to recover before starting training again. Most expect the big fight to happen late in 2026, with November being the likely month. If so, it will probably be on a Saturday, so the possible dates are November 7, 14, 21, or 28.
Fans will surely be waiting eagerly for this exciting showdown!