Anthony Joshua explains why his fight against Jake Paul makes sense

Former heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua has explained the logic behind his upcoming fight against Jake Paul.

Well, it’s happening. Anthony Joshua, the former heavyweight boxing champion of the world, looks set to do battle with Jake Paul in just a matter of weeks in a Netflix boxing superfight. Many people can’t quite believe that it’s happening, but it definitely feels like both men are serious about getting in that ring on December 19.

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A lot of people are questioning why exactly Joshua has opted to go ahead with fighting Paul. Others are fearful that Jake is going to get himself seriously hurt which, given the opponent that stands in front of him, is a serious possibility.

In a recent media scrum, Joshua explained why this fight is happening and why he said yes to it.

Joshua looks ahead to Paul fight

“You’ve got ability, and you have marketability in boxing,” Joshua said, explaining to MMA Junkie and other reporters his decision to box Paul. “Now, unfortunately how it goes, is that you can have the two best fighters with the best ability, but they don’t have marketability, so they won’t be able to showcase their talent to the world because broadcasts aren’t interested and fans aren’t interested. So what we need to do is bring the marketability into the ability realm. That’s why I always try to focus on bringing eyes into the sport.

“Young boxers, I always say, ‘Don’t wait until you become a champion to announce the world who you are.’ It’s too late then. You need to get people to follow you, so by the time you’re a champion, everyone is ready to buy a ticket. ‘I want to see this guy. He’s in town.’ That’s why we need to bring the marketability aspect. I looked at it and said, ‘Wow. This is a great opportunity to showcase myself to the whole world. God willing, I get the job done, and I hurt Jake in spectacular fashion and get a victory.’ All that market then comes over to me, and I can focus on other fighters that have pure ability and need this promotion.”

“I don’t want to focus on it being about Jake, ‘Oh, Jake is small so that makes me confident. Jake is this, so that makes me confident,'” Joshua said. “I just focused on myself. I’m confident in myself. He could be 10 feet, and I’m confident in myself. It’s not about how he is. I’ve got a good tea. I’ve been through ups and downs. I’ve stood the test of time. I’m passionate. I’m hungry, and I’m here to fight my heart out. I’m confident.”

Quotes via MMA Junkie