Tunsurprising confirmation of a “colossal global confrontation” between Jake Paul and Anthony Joshua arrived Monday morning with a thud. This epic description of the eight-round fight between the former YouTuber and the former world heavyweight champion was provided by Paul's company Most Valuable Promotions, which also announced that the fight will be streamed live on Netflix on December 19 and will be called “Judgment Day.”
Boxing operates in a netherworld that seems to have sunk far beyond any fear of judgment, while Paul, as a rookie professional, always had delusions of grandeur. But even boxing may have to admit its culpability if Paul is seriously injured and hospitalized after this fully sanctioned 10-ounce fight takes place in Miami.
Paul is a brilliant rogue, and so far he has chosen his opponents carefully to avoid undue danger. His most obviously successful trick was that he seduce 58-year-old Mike Tyson into the ring last November. It turned out to be the biggest “fight” of 2024, but it was an inevitable farce as Tyson was a shell of the great man he once was. Years of self-torture combined with severe depression, stomach ulcers, a bad knee and acute sciatica meant that Tyson shuffled around the ring and took the occasional blow for an astronomical price.
Joshua is 36 years old and has been particularly low-key since his debacle. loss to Daniel Dubois 14 months ago. His eyes seemed to be on a hugely lucrative fight with Tyson Fury, who has lost his last two fights to Oleksandr Usyk.
Last Saturday before Conor Benn outboxed Chris Eubank Jr.Turki al-Sheikh, chairman of Saudi Arabia's General Entertainment Authority and the man who controls world boxing at the highest level, told 60,000 people at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium that he will stage two big fights next year. He smiled knowingly when asked if a deal was in place for two Fury-Joshua fights.
Eddie Hearn, the promoter, said Joshua planned to train against the journeyman in preparation for Fury. But offering a crazy amount of money to meet Paul takes precedence and will serve as a soft blow before the real business begins.
Joshua, like Fury, is well past his prime, but he remains in incredible shape and has spent the last 10 years fighting at the top of the heavyweight division. He also hits really hard, and if he wanted to make some kind of statement about the gulf between real fighters and YouTube “disrupters”, he could really hurt Paul.
The suspicion remains that this will turn out to be a more controlled arrangement in which Joshua will decide to avoid causing much damage to the man who is going to make him tens of millions of dollars. This gut reaction is supported by the fact that their fight was limited to eight rounds.
after promoting the newsletter
Joshua said: “Whether you like it or not, I'm here to put up big numbers, have big fights and break records while staying cool, calm and collected. Mark my words, you'll see a lot more fighters take advantage of these opportunities in the future. I'm going to break the Internet over Jake Paul's face.”
Paul responded with his usual swagger: “This is not an artificial intelligence simulation. This is Judgment Day. When I win Anthony Joshuaall doubts disappear and no one can deny me the opportunity to compete for the world title. To all my haters, this is what you wanted.”
That last line was a clear admission that if the real fight started, it would be a shock if Joshua didn't knock Paul out. After all, Paul had only faced one relatively competent modern boxer in his modest resume of 13 professional “fights.” But Tommy Fury is not really a boxer at all and he still beat Paul heavyweight title in 2023.
Since then, Paul has maintained his usual diet of mock fist fights and, as a heavyweight, he was due to face Gervonta Davis, the gifted but troubled lightweight world champion, at a bizarre show this month. But this was canceled after a domestic violence claim, was filed against Davis from his ex-girlfriend. Paul, who was a remarkable women's boxing champion, criticized Davis and promised that he would find a stronger opponent.
Joshua stepped into the void. He and Paul would make a ridiculous amount of money. Netflix there will be record ratings and boxing will seem a little more broken. Let's hope Paul doesn't have to be taken away in an ambulance and we can all find a way to feel a little less sloppy after the circus is over.
