Jake Paul has doubled down on his confidence ahead of Friday night’s clash with Anthony Joshua, claiming he is the superior boxer despite facing a former two-time unified heavyweight champion. Speaking in Miami Beach, Paul dismissed Joshua as “stiff” and said his own preparation has been designed to expose what he sees as technical shortcomings when they meet at the Kaseya Center.
Paul said he has brought in specific sparring partners to replicate Joshua’s style and insisted he plans to showcase his full skill set in the eight-round heavyweight bout. The fight will be streamed on Netflix and comes with notable stipulations, including a 245-pound weight limit for Joshua and 10-ounce gloves for both fighters. Joshua has not weighed under that mark since his 2022 rematch with Oleksandr Usyk.
Joshua enters the bout at 36 years old, fighting for the first time since his fifth-round knockout loss to Daniel Dubois in September 2024. The fight will be just his second appearance in the United States, where his lone previous outing ended in a shock stoppage loss to Andy Ruiz in 2019.
Paul is riding momentum after a one-sided unanimous decision win over Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in June and has won six straight fights since his split-decision loss to Tommy Fury in February 2023. He has weighed as much as 227.2 pounds in his career, most notably for his bout with Mike Tyson in November 2024.
Despite being a heavy underdog, with Joshua listed as a 12-1 favorite, Paul believes history is on his side. He called the matchup “the biggest upset in sports history” waiting to happen, setting the stage for one of the most unconventional heavyweight main events in recent memory.
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