The billions Francis Ngannou will earn despite brutal second-round knockout from Anthony Joshua

Cameroon’s Francis Ngannou may have suffered the disappointment of a second-round knockout from Britain’s Anthony Joshua in their heavyweight showdown in Saudi Arabia on Friday but he will walk home with billions from the fight.

Joshua delivered the most powerful statement to the heavyweight division with a destructive second-round knockout win over Ngannou, flooring the 37-year-old in the first round and early in the second.

A dazed Ngannou rose to his feet in Riyadh but was stunned by an explosive and formidable right moment later as the referee halted the contest. Ngannou appeared to be out before he even hit the canvas and required medical treatment.

Former two-time unified heavyweight world champion Joshua extended his unbeaten streak to four fights against Ngannou, a former UFC champion with just one boxing fight under his belt.

Ngannou made his ring debut against Tyson Fury last October and lost a controversial decision despite dropping the heavyweight champion.

From the fight, Joshua will earn the lion’s share of the total payout, taking home £30 million (Ksh5.4 billion) while Ngannou will pocket £16 million (Ksh2.9 billion).

It is a significantly higher payout for the two fighters given Joshua earned the same for his three wins against Jermaine Franklin, Robert Helenius and Otto Wallin last year, but will take home the same amount for just one fight, as per Sport Business Journal.

Ngannou’s £16 million (Ksh2.9 billion) is considerably more than the £10 million (Ksh1.8 billion) he made for fighting Fury.

Switching from UFC to boxing has turned out to be a great financial decision from the Cameroonian as he has now earned £26 million (Ksh4.7 billion) from just two boxing fights after taking home $3.5 million (Ksh497 million) from 14 UFC fights in seven years.

“Sorry guys I let you all down. Today was a bad day in the office but tomorrow will be another day. Thank you all for the love,” Ngannou posted on social media after his loss.

The big pay cheque will ease his pain somewhat as he plots another fight.

Additional information from BBC