Anthony Joshua has made it clear that he will not hold back against Jake Paul and emphasized that only a knockout victory will satisfy his desire for aggression.
The former heavyweight champion Joshua is set to face YouTuber Paul in Miami on December 19 in what is expected to be a one-sided contest. Joshua stands to earn up to £70 million for what is likely to be a showcase event for the Olympic gold medalist.
Joshua, who will be coached by Oleksandr Usyk’s team for the fight, acknowledged that only an early stoppage will be satisfactory. He stated, “Simply defeating him is not enough for me; I must secure a knockout.”
“I intend to inflict damage on him physically. My aim is to demonstrate my superiority in the ring and will continue to do so as long as I am fighting. I will enter the ring with a clear mission. I aim to cause him harm; I want to hurt him significantly during the bout.
“I will be aggressive and assert my dominance. I will land powerful punches and introduce him to certain boxing techniques he may not have encountered before. I will expose him to a new level of boxing skill.”
Joshua also showed respect for his opponent, recognizing Paul’s 13 professional fights since debuting in 2020. “Jake is a serious contender. Consider this: when I started boxing, I walked into the gym with my cousin, expressing my confidence in my abilities; three years later, I competed in the Olympics,” he remarked.
“He has been in this sport for five years. In my third year, I was the underdog with no one believing in me. One should never underestimate anyone.”
On the other hand, Paul expressed his readiness to go to extremes to achieve what could be the most surprising upset in boxing history. “No one ever thought this scenario would be possible when I first stepped into the boxing ring,” he declared.
“The general belief is against me, but prepare to be astonished. I am confident in my power and timing. It’s the unexpected shots that make the impact, and I am a skillful knockout artist; he needs to be cautious. I predict a knockout in the fourth or fifth round. I am prepared to give my all to win this fight.”
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