Anthony Joshua should consider retirement if he doesn’t fight Tyson Fury, but he’d be ‘buzzing’ to fight Jake Paul.
That’s according to former WBA super-middleweight champion George Groves, who believes there’s nothing else out there for ‘AJ’ than a fight with Fury.
5
5
YouTuber-turned-professional boxer Paul proved this month that he is serious about facing Joshua in a mega crossover clash by accepting a 99-1 purse split in the Brit’s favour.
The 28-year-old has had his eyes on the former unified heavyweight champion since overcoming Julio Cesar Chavez Jr in his last fight.
Paul claimed a unanimous decision win over the Mexican in Anaheim, Los Angeles, at the end of June to extend his pro record to 12-1 and earn a spot in the top 15 WBA cruiserweight rankings.
Both Paul and Joshua have since been linked with a lucrative meeting in the squared circle, which has also been approved by Saudi boxing chief Turki Alalshikh.
However, Groves asserted that a fight with Fury is the only one he wants to see next for the Watford powerhouse.
“[Jake Paul] is a gift that keeps on giving for Anthony Joshua,” Groves explained to talkSPORT on Tuesday.
“It’ll be a huge fight, [with] a lot of money at stake and zero risk.
“As a fighter, at some point [and] definitely at Joshua’s point of his career, you weigh up your risk [to] reward.
“And considering there’s zero risk in a Jake Paul fight, apart from embarrassment if something bizarre happens, with a lot of reward, if he gets that fight, he’s gonna be buzzing.
“But that’s not the fight I want to see for Anthony Joshua. I’d rather see him retire or fight Fury.”
5
Alalshikh, who has put on boxing’s biggest bouts in the last few years, revealed last week that he hopes to have Joshua and Fury meet in 2026.
But he also said a ‘tune-up fight’ is needed for both men first, with Olympic super heavyweight gold medallist Tony Yoka having also been linked to fight Joshua.
‘AJ’ hasn’t fought since being knocked out by Daniel Dubois last September, and has been recovering from surgery on his elbow in the last few months.
Fury meanwhile, has expressed his desire to complete a trilogy with newly crowned unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk, having already lost twice to the Ukrainian.
Usyk knocked out Dubois at Wembley this month to become a three-time king of boxing’s heavyweight division, and has since been compared to the likes of Muhammad Ali and Sugar Ray Leonard.
Expanding on his thoughts surrounding an all-British spectacle between Joshua and Fury, Groves emphasised the bout’s significance beyond mere financial gain.
5
5
“I can’t see who else Joshua would want to fight apart from Fury,” Groves added, speaking at a Midnite event ahead of Usyk’s victory over Dubois.
“It’s a big fight. It’s a huge fight with loads at stake. There’s money to be made, but also a lot of pride and bragging rights, which is a motivation in itself.
“Other than that, what are the fights for Joshua? Is it [Deontay] Wilder? Who’s now talking about fighting [Francis] Ngannou?
“I don’t think he [Ngannou] is gonna want to fight Joshua… Wilder could be a good fight, but you think Wilder’s really finished now, [there’s] not very much left to Wilder – he’s off the boil.
“Anything [can] happen in the heavyweight division, and if they want it and they’re gonna pay for it, then we get it and we get excited by the time it comes around.
“I’d still like to see Joshua-Fury; it would be my number one choice.”
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by PostX News and is published from a syndicated feed.)
