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Anthony Joshua agrees to fight Jack Paul |
The Athletic described the difference between the two fighters in a very realistic image. Anthony Joshua, 1.98m tall, stood tall against Jake Paul, only 1.85m, making the YouTuber, now boxer, look up at him during the face-off on November 21. "It's hard to imagine Paul knocking out an opponent of that size, but that's still his goal," wrote The Athletic .
And that's where the craziest boxing match of late 2025 begins.
Paul was originally scheduled to return on November 14 against Gervonta "Tank" Davis in Miami. But a civil lawsuit filed by Davis' ex-girlfriend forced the fight to be canceled, leaving organizers scrambling to find a replacement. They couldn't have done it any more boldly than by bringing in Anthony Joshua, the two-time heavyweight unification champion.
On November 21, at a press conference at 6 p.m. at Kaseya Center (Floria, USA), Joshua and Paul faced off as opponents for the first time. Joshua confirmed the most controversial clause when his body could not exceed 111 kg, even though this was a heavyweight match - a division that has no weight limit. Joshua admitted: "I think that's a mandatory rule. 111 kg is the level I have to reach, and I'm just focused on that."
The clause stems from the huge difference in skill and physique between the two men. Joshua has weighed more than 113kg in recent fights, while Paul – who has only had 13 professional fights – said he would only weigh around 97-102kg when he enters the ring.
Before that, Paul had to reduce his weight to 88.4 kg to fight Davis but the match was canceled. However, the Joshua - Paul match was still confirmed to be a professional match, using 10 oz gloves (about 283-284 grams), fighting 8 rounds, each round lasting 3 minutes.
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Anthony Joshua looks much bigger than Jack Paul. |
Outside the ring, the story gets even crazier. Because Joshua signed an exclusive deal with DAZN worth around £76m/year from 2022, Netflix – the broadcaster of the fight – was forced to pay over £10m to be allowed to film the Briton for this event. According to the Daily Mail , Joshua and Paul will split the £140m salary – one of the highest earnings in boxing history.
Unsurprisingly, the media is predicting the fight will be one of the biggest commercial events ever staged. The Kaseya Center is expected to host 20,000 spectators, with ticket prices ranging from £230 to over £23,000. A special VIP package worth £765,000 will also be auctioned.
Meanwhile, fans' concerns are growing by the day. A video from 2022 showing Joshua and Paul playing together in Dubai has suddenly gone viral again. In the clip, Joshua, who is nearly 2 meters tall, stands tall next to Paul, creating an image that makes many fans shudder: "This size difference is crazy", "It won't end well", "I'm really worried about Paul's life".
That's why the 111kg clause was introduced, to reduce the difference. But even so, Joshua is still a heavyweight giant who has brought more than 113kg of muscle to the ring, while Paul is only used to competing at cruiserweight (lightweight class 85-90kg, not exceeding 90.7kg).
This boxing match is crazy not only because the two main characters have never been on the same professional axis, but also because of the way it was paired, the unprecedented terms, the interference of the broadcaster, the million pound contracts and the huge physical gap.
All of this makes the Joshua - Paul match on December 19 (US time) a phenomenon that is half sports , half entertainment, and 100% unpredictable.
Source: https://znews.vn/ca-the-gioi-nin-tho-truoc-tran-quyen-anh-dien-ro-nhat-nam-post1604973.html
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