JAKE PAUL CALLED OUT BY FORMER JOSHUA AND FURY OPPONENT: "I NEED TO HANDLE HIM"

Jake Paul has been targeted for a showdown with a former rival of Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury as he prepares to make his return to action.

‘The Problem Child’ has been inactive since he suffered a brutal sixth round stoppage defeat to two-time unified heavyweight champion Joshua at the Kaseya Center in Miami back in December.

Paul recently underwent successful surgery after ‘AJ’ broke the American’s jaw in two places after landing a thunderous right hand to close the show on their controversial heavyweight bout on December 19.

The 29-year-old from Cleveland is expected to make his return to the ring before the end of the year however and has been targeted for a potential showdown with former UFC world heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou, who has suffered defeats to both Fury and Joshua during his own boxing career.

Speaking to Sky Sports Boxing, Ngannou admitted that he would be open to facing Paul in the future as he vows to ‘handle’ the former Youtube sensation should their paths cross in the future.

“Well, at first I wasn’t so excited. I wasn’t looking into that, but I think at some point I need to handle him, you know? I think I need to handle him. I think I can kick his ass if I might say so, if I’m allowed to say so.”

Ngannou is yet to step foot back in a boxing ring since he suffered a second round stoppage defeat to Joshua at the Kingdom Arena in Saudi Arabia back in March of 2024.

The 39-year-old Cameroonian is in line to make his MMA return this month when he faces Brazil’s Philipe Lins in a five-round bout on the undercard of Ronda Rousey vs. Gina Carano on Saturday May 16.

- Kailem Lowe

RING WILL BE SLIGHTLY LARGER THAN NORMAL FOR JAKE PAUL VS. ANTHONY JOSHUA

MIAMI BEACH — Not everything will be standard procedure in Friday's eight-round heavyweight bout between Anthony Joshua and Jake Paul at Kaseya Center.

The fight, along with the rest of the bouts that will be streamed on Netflix, will take place in a 22-by-22-foot ring. The standard size for a boxing ring is 20-by-20.

“That’s accurate,” Paul said, confirming the details at the final press conference at Jackie Gleason Theater at The Fillmore. “Pretty standard. I think fights range from 20-foot rings to 24-foot rings. So, 22 feet, I feel great about it.”

While that could presumably help the significantly smaller Paul, Joshua said he has no problem with the slightly bigger ring

"One of the last significant fights to take place in a 22-by-22 ring came four years ago when Canelo Alvarez stopped Billy Joe Saunders in their unification bout for WBA, WBC and WBO middleweight titles in Dallas.

Joshua also can’t weigh more than 245 pounds for the fight, rather than a typical heavyweight fight that doesn’t have a weight limit. The last time Joshua weighed less than 245 was for his rematch against Oleksandr Usyk in 2022. Joshua and Paul will wear 10-ounce gloves, which is standard for a heavyweight fight.

Paul (12-1, 7 KOs) will be making a huge step up in competition when he faces Joshua. Paul, 28, is coming off a unanimous decision over Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. on June 28, which extended his win streak to six.

Joshua (28-4, 25 KOs) will be fighting for the first time since his fifth-round knockout loss to Daniel Dubois for the IBF heavyweight title 14 months ago. His fight with Paul will also represent just his second fight in the U.S.

In his lone appearance in the States, Joshua was on the wrong end of one of boxing’s biggest upsets when he was stopped by Andy Ruiz in the seventh round at Madison Square Garden in New York on June 1, 2019.

Joshua became a two-time unified heavyweight champion six months later when he defeated Ruiz in the rematch by unanimous decision in Saudi Arabia.

- NATE MARRERO

 

 

"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