The Jake Paul boxing experiment enters its most formidable chapter on December 19, when the YouTube sensation steps into the ring towards Anthony Joshua at Miami’s Kaseya Middle. Former two-division boxing champion Paulie Malignaggi gives a perspective that carries explicit weight coming from somebody who has competed towards elite fighters and commentated extensively on Joshua’s performances. His evaluation of this mismatch is as direct as it’s damning for Paul’s prospects.
“He Won’t Let Himself Be Clowned”: What a Former Champion Sees in Anthony Joshua vs. Jake Paul
Speaking in an interview with The Schmo, Malignaggi defined:
“I imply, this isn’t 60-year-old Mike Tyson. That is 35, 36-year-old Anthony Joshua who’s nonetheless comparatively harmful.”
“Within the Dubois combat he nearly knocked Dubois out earlier than being knocked out himself. Joshua has nonetheless been aggressive at a really excessive stage. He hasn’t been lively, however I wouldn’t think about him shot in any respect. And even a shot AJ would nonetheless possible beat a Jake Paul in my eyes.
“The factor about AJ is he’s a fairly severe man. This isn’t Chávez Jr. He takes something he does very severely. He’s received a spine to him, he’s received a personality to him. He’s not going to let himself be clowned by permitting Jake to outlive, permitting Jake to mess around, or permitting Jake to make him look dangerous. He’s entering into there to knock him out, and something much less goes to be a disappointment to him.”
Joshua’s observe report helps this analysis. In March 2024, Joshua confronted Francis Ngannou and distributed with the previous UFC heavyweight champion in devastating trend, scoring a second-round knockout that left Ngannou unconscious on the canvas.
That mentioned, Joshua suffered a fifth-round knockout loss to Daniel Dubois in September 2024, a setback that raised questions on his present standing. Nevertheless, the character of that defeat offers context fairly than definitive proof of decline. Joshua was aggressive within the early exchanges and practically damage Dubois earlier than being caught with a counter. The combat represented a aggressive heavyweight conflict between two succesful fighters, not one-sided dominance.
Joshua’s skilled demeanor and severe nature recommend he views this chance by way of a special lens than different superstar boxing endeavors. The previous champion carries himself with a sure dignity in regards to the sport and doesn’t search to be a part of spectacle for spectacle’s sake. This disposition would manifest within the ring by way of real effort and knockout intent fairly than leisure theater.
On the precise matchup dynamics, Malignaggi left no ambiguity in regards to the Ngannou reference level. He famous:
“So does he knock him out? Yeah, he knocked out Ngannou, proper, and I feel most individuals would say Ngannou is healthier than Jake. He reduce by way of Ngannou prefer it was nothing, like a sizzling knife by way of butter. I’d anticipate nothing much less right here.
“You give Jake some credit score for having the balls to do it, however then once more he’s doing what all of us used to joke about as children: ‘For 1,000,000 {dollars} I’d get within the ring with Mike Tyson.’ Nicely, for 90 million, Jake, you get within the ring with AJ. Is it bravery or is it, ‘You give me sufficient cash, I’ll do it’?”
Paul arrives at this combat with an expert boxing report spanning roughly 5 years. His expertise consists primarily of contests towards blended martial arts fighters transitioning to boxing or celebrities with restricted fight sports activities background. Anderson Silva, Ben Askren, and Tyron Woodley represented elevated opposition in comparison with earlier ventures, but none function on the heavyweight championship stage. His singular loss got here by way of cut up choice to Tommy Fury in February 2023, the one lively skilled boxer of word on his resume.
Joshua, conversely, stays one of many sport’s most completed heavyweight fighters of the trendy period. He held world titles, defeated elite opposition together with Wladimir Klitschko, and performed a lot of his profession on the absolute highest aggressive stage. The expertise hole between these two fighters stays substantial no matter Joshua’s current outcomes.
