British heavyweight boxer Derek Chisora has offered an insight into Anthony Joshua’s behaviour heading into the Brit’s heavyweight showdown against Jake Paul.
Paul and Joshua will go toe-to-toe in a highly anticipated eight-round professional heavyweight bout at the Kaseya Centre in Miami, Florida, on December 19, with the latter having not fought since losing to Daniel Dubois by knockout in September 2024.
Joshua has also shared the ring with Oleksandr Usyk, losing twice to the Ukrainian, while boasting highlight wins against Joseph Parker, Dillian Whyte, and Wladimir Klitschko.
Meanwhile, Paul has 12 victories from his 13 fights, with wins over Mike Tyson, Nate Diaz, and Ben Askren.
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However, it must be noted that almost all of his opponents were well past their primes when they fought the ‘Problem Child’ as Tyson was 58 when he boxed Paul in November of 2024. The 28-year-old’s sole loss came against Tommy Fury.
The upcoming fight, for many, is a mismatch with several boxing experts voicing serious concern for Paul’s safety, given the power and ability of the experienced Joshua.
Others have even accused the bout of being scripted.
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Speaking to The Mail at an IBA event in Dubai, former world heavyweight champion Wilder said: "I think the fight is scripted. I think his [Paul's] fights in general have been scripted before. That's just my strong opinion."
And despite these accusations, Joshua has maintained that he is training for Paul as he would for any other opponent and claimed that he hasn’t “slowed down” his training because he's facing the inexperienced American during an interview with The Athletic.
Meanwhile, Chisora also claimed that Joshua has shut himself off from the world and is only speaking to his mother and son as he prepares for Paul.
Speaking to The Sun, ‘Del Boy’ explained: “You know when AJ is in camp… [he’s] a bitch. He doesn’t want to talk to no-one.
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“You know how many times I’ve messaged him? That guy doesn’t respond to nothing.
“So, when he comes out of camp, he’ll be like, ‘I’m having a party, do you want to come. Like, woah we haven’t spoken for about two months, I’ve sent you messages… the only people he’s talking to are his mum and his son, and I like that. He's not talking to nobody.”
Chisora then claimed Joshua would beat Tyson Fury if he were in the shape he is now. Fury and AJ are reportedly close to agreeing to fight in September 2026.
Topics: Anthony Joshua, Boxing, Heavyweight Boxing, Jake Paul
Luke Davies