"HE'S BEEN HURT IN SPARRING": JAKE PAUL VS ANTHONY JOSHUA 'LEAK' EMERGES DAYS BEFORE FIGHT

Image credit: Jake Paul Instagram / Matchroo
 

Anthony Joshua and Jake Paul are just days away from their controversial heavyweight showdown.

Two-time unified heavyweight champion Joshua is set to face ‘The Problem Child’ over eight rounds at the Kaseya Center in Miami on Friday night.

‘AJ’ is yet to make a return to the ring since he suffered a shock 5th round stoppage defeat to former IBF heavyweight champion Daniel Dubois in September 2024.

Paul was last in action back in July when he defeated former WBC middleweight champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr at the Honda Center in Anaheim.

There are a number of stipulations that have been put in place for their controversial match-up which includes a 245lb weight limit that only Joshua must adhere to.

As reported by The Sun, Ryan Garcia has claimed that Paul has been struggling during his sparring sessions and could be in a world of trouble when he steps into the ring with ‘AJ’ later this week.

“I heard word that he’s getting beat up in sparring by these heavyweights. And these aren’t even Anthony Joshua, bro. S***, I’m leaking some s***. But… [Joshua] has got 50lbs on him.”

It was revealed earlier this month that Paul had drafted in a number of world ranked heavyweights for sparring ahead of his meeting with Joshua, including two-weight world champion Lawrence Okolie and Cuban contender Frank Sanchez.

Okolie, who is now campaigning at heavyweight following his success at cruiserweight and bridgerweight, left ‘The Problem Child’ with a black eye following a recent sparring session.

 - Kailem Lowe

JAKE PAUL AND JULIO CESAR CHAVEZ JR. MAKE CRUISERWEIGHT LIMIT

Some of Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.’s biggest fights have come against the scale, but the second-generation fighter didn’t have issues making the cruiserweight limit ahead of his 10-round clash against Jake Paul on Saturday.

Paul (11-1, 7 KOs) weighed 199.4 pounds, while Chavez (54-6-1, 34 KOs) tipped the scales at a career-high 198.4 pounds on Friday ahead of their fight at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California.

Paul and Chavez faced off without incident for MVP and Golden Boy’s co-promoted event, which will stream on DAZN PPV beginning at 5 p.m. PST.

Chavez came into the weigh-in having missed weight in high-profile fights (and losses) in recent years against Anderson Silva and Daniel Jacobs, and other times before that, in a career that started in 2003.

Chavez has been competing as a cruiserweight since 2021, and the besmirched boxer is 8-4 dating back to 2012, when he was an undefeated middleweight title holder at the time. But at 39, a faded Chavez is promising a rejuvenated version of himself to regain respect with a turn-back-the-clock-like performance.

Paul, meanwhile, is looking to use Chavez as a stepping stone to get ranked and chase a world title run.

In the co-main event, WBA and WBO cruiserweight champion Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez (47-1, 30 KOs), from Mazatlan, Sinaloa, Mexico, weighed in at 199.8 pounds, while Miami-based Cuban challenger Yuniel Dorticos (27-2, 25 KOs) weighed 198.6 pounds.

Ramirez seeks to cement his status in the division with his first stoppage win in the weight class as a possible unification fight looms against Jai Opetaia.

Weights for the rest of the Paul-Chavez Jr. undercard

Welterweights; 10 rounds

Raul Curiel (15-0-1, 13 KOs) 146.4 pounds; Guadalajara, Jalisco

Victor Rodriguez (16-0-1, 9 KOs) 145.2 pounds; Maldonado, Uruguay

Welterweights; 10 rounds

Avious Griffin (17-0, 16 KOs) 146.8 pounds; Chattanooga, Tennessee

Julian Rodriguez (23-1, 14 KOs) 146.6 pounds; Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey

Lightweights; 10 rounds

Floyd Schofield Jr. (18-0, 12 KOs) 134.8 pounds; Austin, Texas

Tevin Farmer (33-8-1, 8 KOs) 135 pounds; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

DAZN will stream the preliminary action to its subscribers beginning at 12 p.m. PST, and the non-PPV card will be headlined by former three-division champion and UFC champion Holly Holm, who is making her return to boxing after a 12-year break.

Lightweights; 10 rounds

Holly Holm (33-2-3, 9 KOs) 136.6 pounds; Albuquerque, New Mexico

Yolanda Vega (10-0, 1 KO) 136.8 pounds; Ciudad Obregon, Sonora, Mexico

Welterweights; 8 rounds

Joel Iriarte (7-0, 7 KOs) 146.8 pounds; Bakersfield, California

Kevin Johnson (12-6, 8 KOs) 146.4 pounds; Las Vegas, Nevada

Bantamweights; 8 rounds

Alexander Gueche (7-0, 5 KOs) 124 pounds; Long Beach, California

Vincent Avina (8-1-1, 7 KOs) 120 pounds; Las Vegas, Nevada

Heavyweights; 6 rounds

Joshua Edwards (2-0, 2 KOs) 226 pounds; Houston, Texas

Dominic Hardy (6-3, 4 KOs) 251.4 pounds; Riverside, Illinois

Junior Lightweights; 10 rounds

Victor Morales (20-0-1, 10 KOs) 130 pounds; Vancouver, Washington

Renee Alvarado (34-16, 22 KOs) 129.6 pounds; Managua, Nicaragua

Junior Featherweights; 10 rounds

John “Scrappy” Ramirez (14-1, 9 KOs) 119.8 pounds; Los Angeles, California

Josue Jesus Morales (33-18-5, 14 KOs) 121.6 pounds; Houston, Texas

- MANOUK AKOPYAN

JULIO CÉSAR CHÁVEZ JR. VOWS TO AVENGE MIKE TYSON ... Against Jake Paul

Julio César Chávez Jr. is ready to step in and defend Mike Tyson's honor ... telling TMZ Sports he plans to whoop Jake Paul in the ring in June to avenge the boxing legend.

Remember, Paul -- 11-1 as a pro boxer -- beat Tyson by unanimous decision in an eight-round bout in November 2024, the most watched fight ever.

Chávez, a former middleweight world champion, will have his chance to get some payback for Iron Mike on June 28 ... when he faces Paul at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California.

And best believe that's the goal.

"I wanna take revenge for Mike Tyson," César Chávez Jr. told us from his boxing gym in L.A. "When I saw the fight, my first thought was, I wanna fight Jake Paul."

On paper, it's a challenging fight for Paul ... who only has 12 professional fights in his short career.

- TMZ Sports 

NATE DIAZ-JORGE MASVIDAL NEWS CONFERENCE ERUPTS INTO BRAWL

 A brawl broke out between members of Nate Diaz's and Jorge Masvidal's teams during a news conference for their July 6 boxing match after Diaz abruptly left before faceoffs.

The news conference took place in Anaheim, California, to promote the new date and location for the upcoming Diaz-Masvidal fight. The boxing match was originally scheduled for June 1 at the Kia Forum in Inglewood but was relocated to the Honda Center in Anaheim on July 6.

Tensions were already high between the two fighters, who last met in the UFC for the inaugural BMF championship in 2019. The highly anticipated encounter ended on a sour note when a doctor stopped the fight because of a cut over Diaz's eye. Masvidal was awarded the victory and was the first BMF champion, but the two fighters have had lingering issues since then that they looked to settle inside of a boxing ring. But Diaz appeared completely uninterested in participating in Thursday's news conference.

"I'm done with this whole press conference s---," a visibly annoyed Diaz said. "I'm glad we're here promoting these great fights that are happening, but, besides that, my work here is done."

Diaz got up and began making his exit before organizers asked for him to return to face off with Masvidal. The Stockton, California, fighter returned to the stage, flexed briefly for the cameras and left before Masvidal could meet him. The two exchanged words and both teams swarmed in.

As the situation intensified, a member of Diaz's team threw a punch at Masvidal after the Cuban fighter slapped at him. One of Masvidal's boxing coaches, Jorge Capetillo, responded with a punch of his own and a brawl ensued between members of both teams. Masvidal emerged after security restored order and didn't appear to have suffered any injuries during the fight. Diaz didn't seem to have participated in the brawl and wasn't seen in any of the videos that have surfaced on social media.

- Andreas Hale, ESPN

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