Kristian Prenga

Kristian Prenga (born 24 January 1991) is an Albanian professional boxer.

Early life Prenga has stated that despite difficult economic conditions, he had a happy childhood. He learned how to drive a truck when he was 8 years old to help his father work in the mountains. He gained an interest in boxing after going to the gym to lose weight. He also trained in kickboxing.

Professional career Prenga made his professional debut on 7 May 2016, defeating veteran Pavel Siska by second-round knockout in Munich, Germany. Prengas biggest win of his career came against American gatekeeper Joey Dawejko. Prenga won by stoppage in the fifth round after Dawejko complained about a bicep injury. Prenga became one of the best ticket sellers in New Jersey. He knocked out American Juan Torres at the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia, dropping Torres three times in the first round and twice more in the second round before the referee stopped the fight.

Prenga vs. Joshua On 27 April 2026, it was announced that Prenga would face former two-time heavyweight world champion Anthony Joshua in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia as a warm-up fight for Joshua's planned bout with Tyson Fury later in 2026. The bout was streamed on DAZN on 25 July 2026, taking place at the same time as the Esports World Cup in Boulevard City. Prenga knocked Joshua down twice in the first round, with the first knockdown coming just 20 seconds into the bout, although Joshua went on to win by knockout in the second round. The bout was highly controversial, with many viewers and pundits questioning its authenticity, owing to Prenga's hesitant and lethargic approach in the second round given the success he had in the first. Former 2-division world champion Paulie Malignaggi explored his own thoughts regarding the fight potentially being fixed on Talksport, stating that "A lot of powerful people make a lot of money if you make AJ vs Fury. So, is it possible that somebody whispered into the Prenga corner? I'm just giving a conspiracy theory, don't shoot the messenger.", going on to say "I'm not saying it's necessarily what I believe. Okay. I mean, it's certainly in my mind. It's certainly something I'm thinking about because I'm still trying to come to terms with a guy who was throwing a bunch of punches and landed them and hurt his opponent and all of a sudden just decided to hit the pause button and say, "You know what? I'm not going to throw any punches in round two. You know, I don't want to win this fight." I don't know. It was weird".

Personal life Prenga is Catholic.

Professional boxing record