Anthony Joshua’s longtime promoter Eddie Hearn believes a long rumored showdown against Jake Paul might actually happen in the near future.
For months, Paul has been teasing his interest in facing the former heavyweight champion in what would be his toughest test to date by a wide margin. During his boxing career, Paul has largely dismantled former UFC fighters, a couple of journeyman boxers and then more recently dispatched 58-year-old Mike Tyson and Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., whose best days were spent competing at 160 pounds.
But Hearn says based on the conversations he’s had with Paul and his business partner Nakisa Bidarian, they’re deadly serious about booking a fight against Joshua.
“I just thought to myself this is Jake Paul creating headlines,” Hearn told TMZ. “He’s not going to fight Anthony Joshua and then every conversation I have with Nakisa [Bidarian] and [MVP], I’m like oh my god, they actually think they can beat him.
“I think there’s a very good chance you’re going to see it next. Early next year. Don’t expect me to tell you, in my opinion, it’s competitive. I think it’s wildly dangerous. I think Jake Paul is a madman but for some reason he believes he can beat Anthony Joshua.”
Perhaps that’s the greatest shock to Hearn, because he understands the idea of Paul wanting to face a legit heavyweight like Joshua for a payday but actually believing he can win is an entirely different story.
That’s why Hearn has faith in the fight happening because Paul has shown utter confidence in himself that he can go out and beat Joshua in a boxing match.
“I said to Nakisa this is going to do the biggest numbers probably that we’ve ever seen in the sport,” Hearn said.
“Bizarrely in the world that we live in today. I said it’s a bit like tuning in to watch David Blaine and one of those really dangerous acts that he takes on. I said but please understand, this is very real. This is not trying to get out of a box with a padlock while she’s swimming around. This is serious stuff and they’re like ‘yeah, we know we can beat A.J.’
“I’m like OK, well listen, if you want Anthony Joshua to evaporate you from the boxing world, we will quite willingly do so.”
Hearn, who was once embroiled in a lawsuit against Paul over fight fixing claims, actually gave the former social influencer credit for transforming himself into a real professional fighter.
Of course he doesn’t believe Paul stands any chance of beating Joshua in a boxing match but Hearn appreciates that the 28-year-old Ohio native has taken his career seriously to this point.
“Me and Jake have had our ups and downs and one of the things I keep saying now is he is a fighter,” Hearn said. “He’s a professional fighter. Now you can have your opinion on how good he is. I’d probably put him in the top 50 maybe in the world at cruiserweight, which by the way is a remarkable achievement. This is a guy from YouTube or whatever you want to call it, who has now been fighting for a good few years, he’s been doing proper training camps, proper sparring.
“Do I think he’s a world class fighter? I don’t. Do I think he’s decent and improved? Yeah. Do I think he can beat Anthony Joshua? Not in a hundred chances. Do I think he’ll get knocked spark out against Anthony Joshua? Every single time.”
Hearn didn’t set a timetable on how quickly a deal might come together for Joshua vs. Paul but he seems confident that the matchup is going to happen.
“I can’t tell you it’s on,” Hearn said. “I get the feeling these guys are crazy enough to do it and if they are, you’re going to see just an incredible spectacle where clearly the sport and the boxing world has gone mad.”
