The YouTuber-turned-boxer faces his toughest test later this week as he takes on the former two-time world champion in a professional dust-up
Jake Paul believes Anthony Joshua will regret the decision to come in light for their heavyweight showdown.
The two boxing stars will go head-to-head in the ring on Friday night in Miami, Florida. Paul has not fought since his dominant decision win over Julio Cesar Chavez Jr back in June. The boxing novice was due to take on Gervonta Davis, but was forced to cancel the showcase after ‘Tank’ was accused of battery, false imprisonment and kidnapping by an ex-girlfriend.
Joshua’s last ring appearance came in September 2024 when he suffered a brutal fifth round knockout defeat to Daniel Dubois. The pair’s upcoming clash will be contested over eight three-minute rounds, with both men set to wear 10oz gloves. After the dust-up was confirmed, ‘AJ’ was informed that he must weigh under 245lb for the clash.
On the topic of the weight, Paul insists that coming in slighter leaner could end up costing Joshua on fight night. “I don’t agree with the decision on his behalf. He’s taken away his best thing against me, which is his power. We’ve seen him when he’s a little bit lighter and there’s just not as not as much thump on the punches, and I think that’s probably the best thing he could have had is that extra oomph in those punches,” the American said during a recent face-off.
Watch Jake vs Joshua live on Netflix for free
Anthony Joshua and Jake Paul will face off for a heavyweight clash in Miami on December 19. The fight will stream live on Netflix, which fans can get for free with Sky’s £15 Essential TV bundle, the brand’s ‘lowest ever price’ for Sky TV.
“But it’s his game plan, whatever he wants. But to me, the weight doesn’t matter, the weight’s not going to make a difference. It’s going to be the skills that win this fight. and I believe my skills are better than his, which is a crazy thing to say, but he’s a very basic fighter and he’s gotten to where he’s at because of the size and because of the power. The skills are what’s going to win this fight and he’s seen that with Usyk when he fought him. And so I believe it’s going to be uh very similar to that.”
Joshua – who is planning on a big 2026 in the ring – is expected to make light work of the social media sensation and has vowed to score a destructive knockout. The former two-time unified heavyweight champion will use the Miami melee as the perfect opportunity to get some rounds under his belt before a February return. “I feel great. I’m blessed. I feel happy that this task was put upon me because. I wouldn’t have pushed myself to get to a certain way. I would have just been doing what I do usually do and I feel really good. So, I think it was a blessing in disguise,” said the Brit.
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Many within the boxing fraternity assumed ‘AJ’ would have a tough battle with the scales after it was revealed that he had to cut over 20lb in order to make the limit for Friday’s bout. Joshua weighed in slightly over 252lb for his last two ring appearances against Dubois and Francis Ngannou.
Nevertheless, he has played down any fears after showing off his ripped physique weeks before fight night. In a video uploaded to social media, the 36-year-old is already under the 245lb limit. The last time he weighed under 245lb was for his rematch with Oleksandr Usyk back in 2022. After losing the first outing, ‘AJ’ was out for revenge, but in an epic back-and-forth clash, the Brit was unable to level the series following a split-decision defeat in Saudi Arabia.
