Finding anyone within boxing willing to predict a Jake Paul victory over Anthony Joshua appears close to impossible.
Paul, 28, is daring to be great by jumping from cruiserweight to face the 36-year-old Joshua, a former Olympic gold medallist and multi-time heavyweight world champion. A move beyond the 200lb limit into boxing’s heavyweight division is nothing new –– Oleksandr Usyk being the most obvious and recent example.
The comparison, however, ends there. Where Usyk brought elite pedigree, Paul does not. The YouTuber-turned-boxer has immersed himself in the sport with undeniable commitment, but his résumé tells a different story.
His victories have come against ageing MMA fighters, a 58-year-old Mike Tyson and a version of Julio Cesar Chavez Jr whose ambition appeared limited to lasting the distance.
To leap from defeat against Tommy Fury to an attempt at toppling Joshua –– while conceding both height and weight –– borders on the absurd.
Hasim Rahman knows all about stunning the boxing world. “The Rock” famously floored Lennox Lewis in South Africa 24 years ago, only to suffer brutal revenge seven months later.
The gulf between Rahman’s own credentials at the time and Paul’s current standing is vast. Speaking to USA Today, he summed up what many feel ahead of Saturday night’s eight-round bout in Miami.
“It should be an easy fight for Anthony Joshua. I mean, Jake Paul never fought anybody on that level in their prime or remotely useful.”
Given boxing’s long history of controversy and accusations of corruption, Rahman was also asked what he would think if Joshua –– who has shared the ring with Oleksandr Usyk, Joseph Parker and others at the elite level –– failed to win convincingly. He answered:
“We need some investigation going on.”
The Paul-Joshua undercard is bolstered by appearances from female world champions Alycia Baumgardner and Cherneka Johnson, along with MVP Promotions’ recent signing Caroline Dubois.
