‎Joshua vs. Paul in the works

After months of speculation, it seems a fight between two-time heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua and former YouTuber Jake Paul may finally be getting some headway. 

Joshua’s promoter, Eddie Hearn, confirmed this on Thursday, when he said that there had been talks between the two camps, with sights on a 2026 fixture. 

‎Joshua and Paul are two fighters with very different paths and are at different points of their career. 

‎Joshua is a former WBO, IBF, and WBA heavyweight title holder, with victories over some of the top-ranked heavyweight fighters of all time. Since turning pro in 2013, he has earned 28 wins from 32 fights, with 25 knockout finishes. 

‎Paul has fared well since his transition from a YouTube vlogger to a professional boxer. He shocked the world when he defeated Mike Tyson by unanimous decision last November. 

He was scheduled to fight Gervonta Davis, until the fight was cancelled earlier this month.  

According to Hearn, although nothing has been set in stone yet, the fight might likely happen in 2026, and Joshua may even have a fight against Tyson Fury next year. He said: “Our focus is on 2026. We have a big fight planned for February, and a big fight, hopefully against Tyson Fury, next year.

‎”We may run out in 2025. We were just going to have a low-key fight somewhere – if that is going to destroy the run of Mr Paul and make tens of millions of dollars in the process, then maybe. Nothing is confirmed yet.”

‎Before the fight happens, a lot of things have to be agreed upon, such as whether it will be a professional outing, what weight class, gloves’ details, and so on. This will be necessary to bridge the gap between the two and try to even things out a bit.  

Still, with all that, Joshua would still have the upper hand here as a more experienced fighter. For Paul, even with a loss, he will still be seen as a man who has faced Anthony Joshua, which is not something a lot of fighters can say.