Jake Paul took the biggest risk of his boxing career against Anthony Joshua, but how did this fight happen and what are its details?
Paul will share the ring with former two-time unified world champion Joshua in an eight-round sanctioned bout at the Caseya Center in Florida on Friday, December 19, US time, and early Saturday, December 20, UK time.
YouTuber-turned-boxer Paul was scheduled to fight Gervonta Davis on November 14, but the bout was canceled due to a civil lawsuit being filed against the world lightweight champion, and he will face Joshua instead.
Paul wore 14-ounce gloves in his only heavyweight fight against Mike Tyson, but was scheduled to wear 12-ounce gloves in his canceled fight against Gervonta Davis, but he and Joshua will use 10-ounce gloves, the legal weight for professional heavyweights.
Paul owns a 12-1 record, including wins over Tyson, former world champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., and former UFC champions Nate Diaz and Anderson Silva, but his only loss was a split decision to Tommy Fury in 2023.
Joshua is a two-time heavyweight champion of the world and has a record of 28-4 with wins over Wladimir Klitschko, Joseph Parker and Alexander Povetkin, but losses to Oleksandr Usyk, Daniel Dubois and Andy Ruiz Jr.
Nakisa Bidalian, CEO of Most Valuable Promotions, Paul’s agent, answered some important questions about the fight.
How did this battle happen?
“Jake came up with this in March of this year and said, ‘I want to fight Anthony Joshua.’ People laughed at that.
“I was here on Sky Sports in July and there was a question asking if I saw this happening. Our plan was to do this in March or April of 2026.
“Plans changed and Jake stood up and said, ‘I want to fight Joshua now.’
“The two of them talked about this in March and said we want to do this. When the opportunity came, they drove the conversation and said, yes, we want to do this for boxing.”
“Our biggest priority was not Jake Paul getting into the fight. Our biggest priority was the other fighters on the card, who have been training hard for this big moment, and that’s what we put together.”
“Then Matchroom and[Joshua’s promoter]Eddie Hearn have been great partners throughout the process.”
Why is Paul on the A side of the match?
“I think it was a good fit.
“Jake just had the biggest event of all time in terms of streaming viewers last year with 125 million viewers. Joshua had been out for over a year and a half.
“Our platform is Netflix and our company, Most Valuable Promotions, so it’s Jake vs. Joshua.”
Why would Paul take a risk against a huge puncher like AJ?
“This is a more dangerous fight than the Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis fight, but it’s a more winnable fight.
“Gervonta was small, fast and very skilled. Joshua was big and a heavy puncher, but not as evasive. If Jake has the right game plan, I think he has a pretty good chance of winning this fight.”
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“You have to look at the experience that Jake has had in the five years he’s been in this sport. To be playing in your 12th or 13th game in front of 80,000 people at AT&T Stadium, in front of 125 million people, that’s not something you normally get.
“He’s going to go into that tournament very calm, very calm. I believe he’s 100 percent confident he’s going to beat Anthony Joshua.”
Is there a weight limit for this fight?
“There’s a lot of discussion about weight.
Weight limit imposed on Anthony Joshua
“Joshua fought Usyk twice and Usyk weighed 221 pounds then. Joshua was 240-245 pounds. When Jake fought Mike Tyson last year, he weighed 227 pounds.
“We expect Jake to weigh between 225 and 230 pounds. Anthony Joshua’s weight limit is 245 pounds.”
What do you say to those who call this a “mismatch”?
“I would say it’s a lot less of a mismatch than what you saw with AJ and Francis Ngannou. Francis Ngannou is a big guy with very little boxing experience.
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“I think it’s a lot less of a mismatch than AJ’s ninth or 10th fight with a guy who’s been knocked out 20 to 25 times. Given AJ’s pedigree, Jake is built for this fight.”
“Jake is built for big moments. Do you think he’s dangerous for Jake Paul? Of course he is. Do you think he’s dangerous for Anthony Joshua too? 100 percent.”
How will Paul deal with the sudden change in his opponent?
“If you look at him when he was fighting Mike Tyson, he was going to fight at heavyweight. That fight got postponed and he moved down to cruiserweight.
Jake Paul was originally scheduled to face world lightweight champion Gervonta Davis
“Here he was trying to get down to 195 pounds to fight Gervonta Davis. Now, with six weeks’ notice, he has to move up to heavyweight, which is something he’s used to.”
“If you look at the divisions from cruiserweight to heavyweight, Usyk is a perfect example of that, but it’s common for cruiserweights to step up to heavyweight.”
Who is preparing Jake for this fight?
“It’s the same team that was in his corner the whole time.
“Jake lives outside of Puerto Rico, has his own facility in Puerto Rico, and trains five days a week. So that team just has different sparring partners than they did with Gervonta Davis.”
Who else will be fighting on the December 19th card?
“Most of the ‘Tank’ (Davis) fights we announced will remain on this card.
“The biggest event is Alicia Baumgardner vs. Layla Beaudoin. It’s a 12-on-3 battle, so these two women will be doing men’s rules, men’s rounds, and men’s portions.”
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Can Paul derail Joshua’s career?
“Anthony Joshua has a lot of plans for 2026.
“Jake’s role is to play foil in those plans, and his delusional confidence gives him the best chance to carry them out.”
