“If I Can Kill You, I Will Kill You” – Anthony Joshua’s Stark Warning to Jake Paul
Anthony Joshua isn’t overthinking this one. When the 36-year-old heavyweight steps into the ring against Jake Paul on December 19 at Miami’s Kaseya Center, he’s doing it with an almost disarming clarity about his own nature.
Anthony Joshua’s Chilling Message Ahead of Jake Paul Fight
“It’s just, do you know, I was actually looking at myself today. I’m a very like respectful guy brought up by good family. But if I can kill you, I will kill you. That’s just how I am. And this is just the job I do. So let’s go.” He explained during the pre-fight press conference.
Joshua, a two-time unified heavyweight champion with 25 knockout victories in 28 wins, takes on a YouTuber-turned-boxer with a 12-1 record who’s built his career beating aging fighters and faded names. The British veteran stands 6’6″ with an 82-inch reach, towering over Paul’s 6′ frame and 76-inch reach. Joshua’s last fight came in September 2024 when Daniel Dubois knocked him out in the fifth round at Wembley, sending him into a 14-month hiatus.
Paul, meanwhile, has fought twice during that same stretch, most recently beating Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. on points in June 2025. The skill gap appears cavernous, yet both fighters will collect roughly $92 million each from a reported $184 million purse, potentially even higher depending on whose figures you believe.
Joshua had different plans originally. He’d envisioned taking a quiet year away from boxing, then slipping back with an understated tune-up fight in Saudi Arabia, keeping noise to a minimum. That changed when Netflix and Most Valuable Promotions came calling with numbers he couldn’t refuse. The move also opens the door to fighting Tyson Fury in 2026, a prospect Saudi boxing chief Turki Alalshikh has already teased as a “mega-event for Riyadh Season.” But first comes Paul, who Paul has promised to knock out by the fifth or sixth round.
Joshua sees something different in this matchup. He views the spectacle not as a distraction but as essential.
“It creates conversation – barber shop conversations, taxi conversations, airplane conversations – and that’s what we want. The more people talking about the fight, regardless of what it is that they’re talking about, is a massive bonus. So for me, I’m not too sure, I’m not worried about what people think about the integrity side. I’m more worried about: are they talking? And as long as they are, I think we’re doing a good job.”
Joshua understands that in modern boxing, particularly through Netflix’s streaming model, reach matters more than traditional gatekeeping. The fight isn’t harbouring pay-per-view barriers; it is live on Netflix for subscribers worldwide, fundamentally reshaping how boxing reaches audiences.
The bout itself is sanctioned as a professional heavyweight contest over eight three-minute rounds with 10-ounce gloves, meaning knockouts are allowed and the result goes on both fighters’ records. Joshua has displayed devastating knockout power throughout his career, landing three knockouts each in the third and seventh rounds historically, with his last five stoppage victories spread across rounds 3, 7, 10, 11, and 7. Paul has won seven times by stoppage in his 12 professional bouts, though his opposition pales beside Joshua’s championship résumé.
Facing Paul means executing his game plan without overthinking it, a straightforward application of his tools against someone operating at an entirely different level. Whether Paul’s speed and conditioning prove disruptive or Joshua’s size, experience, and power overwhelm him will determine whether this circus becomes a historic upset or a demonstration of championship dominance.
