Anthony Joshua could be on course for a career-best payday if he takes on Jake Paul in a potential 2026 showdown, but his promoter, Eddie Hearn, has issued a stern warning to Paul about underestimating the danger of facing a seasoned heavyweight champion.
As talks between the two camps continue, Hearn believes this fight could very well be Joshua’s next challenge.
With 32 professional fights and two heavyweight world titles, Joshua is an experienced and powerful boxer, while Paul, who first rose to fame on YouTube, has 13 bouts under his belt.
“At first I thought it was a publicity stunt from Jake and now the more I speak to them the more I actually understand – Jake Paul thinks he can beat Anthony Joshua,” Hearn told BBC Sport.
“This is a step too far. So be careful what you wish for, because this isn’t a game.
“This isn’t YouTube. This isn’t Disney. This is the danger zone.”
Though Paul’s previous fight against a long-retired and 58-year-old Mike Tyson featured special conditions, bigger gloves and a maximum of eight two-minute rounds, both teams have stressed that any fight with Joshua would be a straight-up professional contest.
Most Valuable Promotions CEO Nakisa Bardian, who co-founded MVP with Paul, said, “This would be pursued as a straight up professional fight.”
He added, “I think there’s certainly an experience gap between the two of them in terms of where they’re at in their career.
“From my perspective, Joshua’s an active heavyweight.
“The likelihood of Anthony Joshua being able to land a heavyweight punch is much higher than what Mike Tyson had.
“I want to give Jake as much time as possible to improve on his boxing skillset to be able to effectively neutralise that main attribute of Anthony Joshua.
“My ask of him is to wait longer to do it. But when an opportunity is there, sometimes if you don’t take it, it never comes back.”
Hearn acknowledged that the fight could attract criticism, especially following the recent tragic death of super-featherweight Shigetoshi Kotari in Japan, a stark reminder of boxing’s risks.
Paul, who has fought many former MMA fighters and competed at cruiserweight, suffered his only loss against Tommy Fury.
While Paul aims to become a world champion, many in the boxing world remain skeptical.
“Do I think he’ll go and win world titles? Nope, never,” Hearn said bluntly.
Bardian compared the potential fight to Francis Ngannou’s transition from UFC heavyweight champion to boxing, recalling how Ngannou was knocked out by Joshua after going the distance with Tyson Fury.
“Anthony Joshua fought Francis Ngannou. Francis Ngannou first fought Tyson Fury who many says is a better boxer than Anthony Joshua and went all 10 rounds,” Bardian said.
“And then had the opportunity to fight Anthony Joshua and got flatlined. Which happens all the time in boxing.”
Both camps expect the fight to take place in a major stadium in the United States. Paul and Tyson drew a crowd of around 72,000 at the AT&T Stadium in Texas, while Joshua has staged six fights at various UK stadiums.
The potential payday for Joshua is a major factor, with Hearn suggesting it could eclipse all his previous earnings.
“Probably right up there [as his biggest fight purse],” Hearn said.
“[Usually] the more dangerous the fight, the bigger you expect the purse to be, or to reflect that.
“This is actually the opposite. It might be AJ’s easiest ever fight and potentially his biggest payday.”
