Joshua To Battle Youtuber Paul In December

YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul will fight former unified heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua in an eight-round professional heavyweight bout on December 19 at Miami’s Kaseya Centre.

The Most Valuable Promotions were announced on Monday.

Paul, 28, will face arguably the most accomplished opponent of his career in 36-year-old Joshua, a two-time holder of the WBO, WBA and IBF belts.

The event is set to be streamed globally on Netflix and marks Paul’s second live appearance on the streaming platform following last year’s win over Mike Tyson.

Paul confirmed the fight on Monday, describing it as a Judgment Day.

He said, “This isn’t an AI simulation. This is Judgment Day. A professional heavyweight fight against an elite world champion in his prime,” Paul said in a statement, promising to put “Britain’s Goliath” to sleep.

“When I beat Anthony Joshua, every doubt disappears, and no one can deny me the opportunity to fight for a world title. To all my haters, this is what you wanted. To the people of the United Kingdom, I am sorry.”

Joshua, a 2012 Olympic gold medallist and two-time unified world champion, has a 28-4 record with 25 knockouts.

However, he lost twice to Oleksandr Usyk and was knocked out by Daniel Dubois in September last year in an IBF heavyweight title bout – his last professional fight.

Joshua said there would be “no mercy” when he entered the ring to face Paul.

Similarly, Anthony Joshua said it is a big opportunity for him to mark his return to the sport after battling with injuries.

He said, “I took some time out, and I’m coming back with a mega show. It’s a big opportunity for me.

“Whether you like it or not, I’m here to do massive numbers, have big fights and break every record whilst keeping cool, calm and collected.

“Mark my words, you’ll see a lot more fighters take these opportunities in the future. I’m about to break the internet over Jake Paul’s face.”

Paul fought at heavyweight last November, a points win over Mike Tyson, who came out of retirement for a high-profile showdown.

He has a 12-1 record and enters the Joshua fight following a career-best victory against Julio Cesar Chavez Jr, a former world champion, by unanimous decision in June.

Joshua claimed his first world title in 2016, unifying the WBO, WBA and IBF belts in an epic fight against Wladimir Klitschko the following year.

Joshua won those belts back from Andy Ruiz when the American upset him in 2019, and his championship reign was only ended by Oleksandr Usyk, now the undisputed heavyweight titlist.