Anthony Joshua knows exactly how his upcoming boxing bout looks—and he’s fine with that.
The former heavyweight champion is heading into one of the strangest chapters of his career this week, facing Jake Paul in a sanctioned eight-round bout in Miami. It’s a matchup that has drawn disbelief from the sport's purists, but Joshua isn’t spending any energy trying to convince them he’s right.
“I don’t need to understand them,” Joshua said to The New York Times when asked about critics questioning the fight. “They need to understand me. They need to come and sit down with me and listen.”
Joshua, 36, hadn’t planned initially on stepping back into the spotlight so loudly. After being stopped by Daniel Dubois in September 2024, he wanted a low-key return—minimal media, minimal noise, and a simple appearance on a Saudi undercard. That plan changed once Paul reached out directly.
“What an opportunity,” Joshua said. “I just knew it was going to be big. So I thought, scrap my ideas—the universe wants me to do something bigger here.”
That “something bigger” has placed Joshua squarely inside the spectacle-heavy world Paul has built, one fueled by social media reach and crossover attention. Paul brings millions of followers and viral hype; Joshua brings Olympic gold, multiple world titles, and more than a decade at boxing’s elite level.
The criticism was inevitable. Some fans believe the fight cheapens Joshua’s résumé. Others argue it puts Paul in unnecessary danger. Joshua rejects both ideas outright.
“I’ve got no concerns at all,” he said of the matchup. “None.”
Joshua insists this hasn’t been a novelty camp. He’s been training alongside members of Oleksandr Usyk’s team and says the work is aimed at more than the upcoming bout. “We’re not training for Jake Paul,” he said. “We’re training to beat whoever’s in the future.”
Still, Joshua isn’t dismissing Paul as a participant. He’s studied Paul’s tendencies closely, noting his stance, jab, conditioning, and confidence. “He’s fearless,” Joshua said. “He hasn’t had any trauma yet.”
That doesn’t mean Joshua feels pressure to end things instantly. While he understands expectations, he’s focused on execution over optics. “I need to do my best, I need to win,” he said. “I understand what my job is.”
For Joshua, this fight is less about proving something to the internet and more about momentum. He’s realistic about the remaining years in his career and unapologetic about maximizing them.
“I’m either going to do it when I’m 60, or I’m going to do it now,” he said. “I’m just ahead of the game.”