Anthony Joshua ‘finalising’ Jake Paul bout in heavyweight showdown earlier than Christmas
Anthony Joshua is set to face Jake Paul in a heavyweight showdown before Christmas, with the fight to be broadcast live on Netflix
Anthony Joshua is on the verge of finalising a deal to take on YouTuber Jake Paul in a pre-Christmas bout.
Paul was originally scheduled to face off against lightweight world champion Gervonta Davis this Friday, but the fight was called off following kidnap allegations against Davis by his ex-girlfriend.
Now Paul, 28, is set to go head-to-head with former two-time heavyweight king Joshua, 36, in Miami. The match will be streamed live on Netflix and is expected to take place on either December 12 or 19.
Joshua hasn’t stepped into the ring since his brutal knockout by Daniel Dubois at Wembley last September. He views the lucrative showdown with Paul as a warm-up for a potential face-off with rival Tyson Fury next year.
Paul has built up his record by taking on former MMA fighters, with his only notable opponent, Tommy Fury, handing the social media sensation his sole defeat in 2023, reports the Mirror.
Earlier this week, Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn hinted that Joshua could feature on an undercard this year – unless he finalises terms with Paul. “We will make a decision this week on Anthony’s next fight,” he stated.
“If he fights this year, it’s just gonna be a… You probably won’t even hear about it, unless it’s Jake Paul. We’ll make that decision this week, but – outside of Jake Paul – if he fought this year, you really wouldn’t know about it.”
Earlier this year, Paul challenged Joshua as he was looking for a contender for an early 2026 match, having already secured a deal with Davis. Nakisa Bidarian, Paul’s business associate, stated in August: “This would be pursued as a straight up professional fight.
I think there’s certainly an experience gap between the two of them in terms of where they’re at in their career.
“From my perspective, Joshua’s an active heavyweight. The likelihood of Anthony Joshua being able to land a heavyweight punch is much higher than what Mike Tyson had.
“I want to give Jake as much time as possible to improve on his boxing skillset to be able to effectively neutralise that main attribute of Anthony Joshua.
“My ask of him is to wait longer to do it. But when an opportunity is there, sometimes if you don’t take it, it never comes back.”
When asked about Paul previously, Joshua said the American was “good for boxing”. “He’s good for boxing. He has no amateur background and just jumped straight in. He’s learning under pressure, and that will help him evolve quickly,” Joshua commented.
