Jake Paul will take a massive step up in competition when he faces former two-time heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua in a heavyweight fight on Dec. 19 at Kaseya Center in Miami (Netflix). It’s a drastic shift in gears after Paul was originally scheduled to face WBA lightweight champion Gervonta “Tank” Davis in an exhibition bout with a catchweight of 195 pounds on Nov. 14. However, Paul’s fight with Davis was canceled on Nov. 3 in the wake of a civil lawsuit filed against Davis by his ex-girlfriend that accused him of battery, aggravated battery, false imprisonment, kidnapping and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
Paul will face Joshua, an opponent 100 pounds heavier than Davis, in a professionally sanctioned heavyweight boxing match. Unlike his exhibition fight with Davis, Paul won’t have a size advantage to offset the skill gap. Joshua has been fighting at around 250 pounds, while Paul fights at the cruiserweight limit of 200 pounds. Paul would look to shock the world and pull off what could be one of the biggest upsets in boxing history.
But how did we get here and what does this all mean?
Why is Paul fighting Joshua?
After Paul’s exhibition with Davis was canceled, the YouTuber-turned-boxer did everything he could to compete before the end of 2025. According to Most Valuable Promotions, Paul’s promotional outfit, there were talks with several potential opponents before landing on Joshua.
Earlier this year, Paul expressed interest in fighting Joshua and included him on his revised hit list that he recently shared with ESPN. However, the original timeline for a fight with Joshua would have had the two meet sometime in 2026 after the Davis fight. Paul quickly turned his attention to Joshua, who had been sidelined after undergoing elbow surgery in June and the two sides came to terms on a deal.
Joshua’s promoter, Matchroom Boxing’s Eddie Hearn, had told ESPN that Joshua was looking to fight once at the end of 2025 before targeting a fight with fellow British heavyweight Tyson Fury in 2026.
Is this an exhibition fight?
Las time Anthony Joshua, center, fought a boxing novice, he demolished Francis Ngannou in two rounds in March 2024. FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP via Getty Images
No. Paul vs. Joshua will be a sanctioned heavyweight fight that is scheduled for eight, three-minute rounds. The fighters will also wear 10-oz. gloves, standard for heavyweight fights.
Paul is much closer in weight to Joshua, but will now have to deal with both a size and skill gap. Joshua — a former Olympic gold medalist and two-time unified heavyweight champion — has come in as high as 254 pounds and as low as 229 pounds in his pro career. Paul’s highest weight was 227¼ pounds for his November 2024 exhibition against former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson. He weighed 199.4 pounds in his most recent fight, a dominant win against Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in June.
Why would Paul want to fight Joshua now?
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Say what you want about Paul, but he has been persistent with wanting to challenge himself, even though he’s still regarded as a novice in boxing. Paul has drawn criticism for his opponents. His career has consisted of MMA fighters, YouTubers, a former NBA Slam Dunk champion, journeyman boxers and a retired heavyweight. In his last fight, Paul fought the closest thing to a “real” boxer in Chavez, a former middleweight champion, and dominated against the fighter whose best years were long behind him.
The last time Joshua was in the ring with a boxing novice, he obliterated former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou in two rounds in March 2024.
Still, Paul wants to test himself and we’ll see exactly where he’s at when he steps inside the ring with Joshua.
Why would Joshua take a fight with Jake Paul?
Why wouldn’t he? It’s a low-risk, high-reward fight on a massive stage that will be streamed globally on Netflix. Joshua has faced some of the best heavyweights of his generation and has already sought to compete before the end of 2025. As one of the biggest stars in the history of British boxing, this fight will also see Joshua’s status grow in the United States, where he hasn’t fought since a disastrous knockout loss to Andy Ruiz Jr. at New York’s Madison Square Garden in 2019.
The only market that Joshua hasn’t cornered is the U.S. and facing someone with the reach of Paul will certainly help in an event he ends up facing Fury in 2026.
How does this affect Joshua’s career?
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Eddie Hearn speaks about the potential clash between Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury.
If Joshua does what most think he’ll do and beat Paul definitively, his plans for a megafight with Fury will stay intact. Fury is retired, but could be enticed to return for a Joshua fight.
We have seen what Joshua did to Ngannou, five months after Ngannou nearly pulled off a massive upset in a split decision loss to Fury. It’s unlikely that Joshua will have any interest in carrying Paul to an entertaining fight. However, for every round Paul survives, Joshua’s stock could take a hit. And if the fight is somehow competitive, there will be questions about Joshua’s current place in boxing. The last time he was in the ring in September 2024, he was stopped in five rounds by Daniel Dubois. That is forgivable considering Dubois’ tenure in boxing. A competitive fight with the less experienced and smaller Paul won’t bode well for his future.
How does this affect Paul’s career?
This is an interesting question because the expectation is that a highly decorated, hard-hitting heavyweight will defeat Paul categorically, and the chances of an upset will be heavily against Paul. This is a fight that Paul is expected to lose, and because of that, the idea of stepping in the ring and lasting could earn him a moral victory, as long as he isn’t brutally knocked out early in the fight.
If Paul somehow finds a way to make it competitive, it will only help his boxing stock rise. He’s already proven that a loss won’t completely derail his career and his massive presence on social media will allow him to lick his wounds and return, if not more marketable, having earned respect from a boxing community that has criticized his boxing career.
It’s almost a no-lose situation for Paul because he should have never been able to step into the ring with a former heavyweight champion at this stage of his career. Any time spent on his feet will be a win. However, should he end up on the wrong end of a highlight reel knockout, he’ll go viral for all the wrong reasons.
