Ex-world champ predicts Joshua vs Fury early KO

Former world champion George Groves has tipped Tyson Fury to knock out Anthony Joshua early when the two heavyweights meet in December, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.

Groves made the prediction in an interview with Grosvenor Sport. The 38-year-old does not expect the fight to go the distance and sees a strong chance of a finish inside the first three rounds, with Fury winning.

The fight takes place on December 11 at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff and will be shown live on Netflix. Both men are former world champions, and the bout is widely regarded as one of the biggest all-British fights ever.

Groves said size would be the deciding factor, calling the 38-year-old Fury too big for Joshua. He expects Fury to weigh above 19 stone. He added that Fury did not necessarily have a powerful punch, but said the weight behind his shots could do damage once he found his range. In his view, Fury only needs to land a few solid shots, and the effect would build quickly.

The former champion said the fight carried too much weight for tactical games and neither man would be able to pick up easy rounds. He described Fury as a solid favourite.

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Both men come into the fight after recent outings that raised questions.

Joshua was floored twice in the first round in July by relative unknown Kristian Prenga, though he recovered to stop him in round two. Fury beat 46-year-old Mariusz Wach in seven rounds in Thailand in a fight that was not broadcast.

Groves said the history of both men being knocked down before sits behind his prediction, as either could be dropped again.

Groves also drew on his own experience of big occasions. He lost twice to Carl Froch, including a rematch at Wembley Stadium in 2014 that drew about 80,000 fans.

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