Written by Anthony Joshua | Photo by Richard Pelham/Getty Images
Anthony Joshua vs. Jake Paul could be the last fight of Paul’s brief boxing career.
Following his win over Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. this past Saturday, Paul mentioned the possibility of setting up a future fight with Joshua. This isn’t the first time Paul has discussed wanting to face the two-time undisputed heavyweight champion and the bout would undoubtedly draw widespread interest due to their combined star power.
Speaking to talkSPORT, Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn supported the potential matchup, though he’s not sure it will be Paul’s best interests health-wise.
“Look, he’s calling out Gervonta Davis, who is a 135-pound lightweight, and he’s calling out Anthony Joshua, that’s a heavyweight monster,” Hearn said. “I think Jake Paul is crazy enough to fight Anthony Joshua because the money would be absolutely obscene. It’s a catastrophic mismatch that people would tune in to watch because it would lead to the end of Jake Paul. Hopefully, not literally, but it’s that dangerous.
“It’s a fight that I don’t think should really happen if I’m honest.”
Paul is 12-1 since making his pro boxing debut in 2020 and he’s compiled an impressive list of wins, at least as far as name value is concerned. Though “The Problem Child” is yet to step into the ring against any notable current boxers, he has booked himself against recognizable names from the world of combat sports, specifically former UFC stars Nate Diaz, Anderson Silva, Tyron Woodley, Mike Perry, and Ben Askren, defeating them all.
The biggest feather in his cap—and the most heavily criticized of his choice of opposition—was a fight with heavyweight legend Mike Tyson, which aired live on Netflix this past November. Paul won a unanimous decision over the 58-year-old Tyson in a bout that was widely maligned but also broke viewership records.
Hearn believes Paul deserves respect for his development in the ring, regardless of who he’s been fighting.
“I will say about Jake Paul, I do think you start having to give him a margin of respect,” Hearn said. “This guy is going through the motions, he’s putting the hard spars in, he just went 10 rounds with, yes, a washed-up fighter, but a former world champion that did train for that fight. They’re very clever in terms of the opponents they pick. They’re not going to gamble unless the money is out of control and it wouldn’t surprise me if Jake Paul wanted to move forward with an Anthony Joshua fight.”
Joshua (28-4) is coming off of a disappointing knockout loss to Daniel Dubois this past September. The loss snapped a four-fight win streak for Joshua, who was attempting to take Dubois’ IBF title. The British star has dabbled in novelty fights himself, most notably scoring an incredible knockout of former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou in March 2024.
It’s unclear if Joshua will attempt to work his way back to another title opportunity or pursue a bout with Paul.
“He’s not exactly looking at Jake Paul going, ‘That’s my dream opponent,’” Hearn said of Joshua. “Would he go in there and give him a hiding for a massive chunk of money? Probably. I’ll be saying, ‘Yeah, go on. I’d like to see it.’”
This week, the WBA decided to include Paul in its cruiserweight rankings, placing the influencer-turned-boxer at No. 14 on their list. Hearn doesn’t think Paul has proven to be at that level just yet, but he has impressed especially given his late start.
“I think a lot of these governing bodies, although they’re governing bodies, some of them are kind of commercially led,” Hearn said. “They think it’s going to benefit them to have Jake Paul in their rankings. I think Jake Paul is in the top 100 in the world in the cruiserweight division and by the way, I don’t think that’s an awful achievement given the fact this guy found boxing in his mid-20s and I think he’s doing well. I think he’s improving.
“Is he world class? Absolutely not. But he is improving and he’s a lot better than a lot of fighters out there, so in a way, good luck. Can’t believe I’ve said it, but in a way, good luck.”