Boxing analyst Steve Bunce says Anthony Joshua was handed an “offer he simply couldn’t refuse” to face YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul in a high-profile bout scheduled for 19 December at the Kaseya Center in Miami.
Joshua, a former two-time unified heavyweight champion, will meet Paul over eight three-minute rounds, with both fighters using regulation 10-ounce gloves. The 36-year-old Briton, who has weighed more than 250lbs in his last three outings, must come in at under 245lbs for the contest.
Despite describing the match-up as “ridiculous”, Bunce believes the financial incentive explains Joshua’s decision. Reports claim the heavyweight star could earn £36.9m ($50m) from the fight.
“Jake Paul fought Mike Tyson last November and nearly broke the world,” Bunce told BBC Radio 5 Live. “There were something like 300 million people watching across different channels. That’s why this fight is happening. AJ has been made an offer he simply couldn’t refuse.”
Bunce, who insisted he would “never deny any professional boxer a payday”, said Joshua’s foundation work also means the earnings would be spread “through the community”. He added that the Paul fight is likely to be “one of Joshua’s final big paydays” as negotiations with Tyson Fury continue in the background.
Highlighting the mismatch, Bunce noted Joshua’s size and pedigree: “AJ will be at least six inches taller and around four stone heavier. He’s an Olympic champion. Jake Paul is a terrific novice , a great novice , but still a novice.”
Jake Paul’s camp has dismissed concerns over safety. Nakisa Bidarian, co-founder of Most Valuable Promotions and Paul’s manager, argued the bout is no more dangerous than many others sanctioned in the sport.
“I don’t think it’s reckless,” he told BBC Sport. “Jake has a great shot. AJ is big and strong but slower, and more vulnerable to Jake’s movement. In my mind this is more sanctionable than many fights in boxing.”
But former British middleweight Nick Blackwell, who retired after suffering a brain injury in 2016, strongly disagrees.
He labelled the fight “so dangerous”, warning that Joshua will “be able to do what he wants”, and said he does not want any fighter to experience what he went through.
Even so, Blackwell acknowledged the spectacle’s global pull.
“He’s going to earn a lot of money and everyone’s going to watch it,” he said. “It’s massive entertainment for both fighters , but I don’t agree with it, and the whole boxing world won’t agree with it.”
