Lawrence Okolie Gives Honest Verdict on Jake Paul's Ability in Sparring Sessions

British heavyweight contender Lawrence Okolie has lifted the lid on sparring with Jake Paul, revealing that one of the sessions made him "go home and look at myself in the mirror".

Okolie, a former cruiserweight world champion who is ranked number one in the WBC heavyweight rankings, was drafted in by Paul to help him prepare for Friday's fight against Anthony Joshua.

After sharing the ring with Okolie, as well as heavyweight contenders Frank Sanchez and Jared Anderson, Paul suffered bruising underneath his right eye.

"I'm sparring a bunch of world champion heavyweights," he told Adin Live's YouTube channel after being asked about the eye injury. "I think Okolie did that to me. He's 6-foot-6 and 270 pounds."

So, was Okolie impressed by what he saw from the YouTuber-turned-boxer? Speaking to Seconds Out, the Brit was asked about accusations that he was taking it easy on Paul in sparring.

Okolie played down those rumours. "I was quite shocked by how good he is, if I'm honest with you," he said.

Okolie (far right) has been sparring with Paul. Image credit: Instagram

"I expected to just go in there, speak to the coaches and say, 'Hey, how hard do you want me to go with him? What percentage?' — and they were just like, 'Do what you do.' I went in and did what I did. And so did the other two guys that were there. I was shocked."

In a separate interview with Pro Boxing Fans, Okolie spoke about a sparring session that left him questioning his own ability as he prepares to fight Moses Itauma in a WBC eliminator on December 19.

"One day, he did really well on a spar," he began. "I had to go home and have a think to myself – because obviously I'm still a boxer and I have my own fight, so I don't really care that he's a YouTuber or whatever he is.

"So when he was landing certain shots and making me miss certain shots, I was thinking... 'Ah, what?!'. I had to go home and really look at myself in the mirror.

"I was thinking, 'The next day, the next time you spar, go 100 per cent'. Subconsciously, you might hold back without you even realising. I was gearing myself up. I said to myself, 'Get there 30 minutes early, stretch, walk, treat it like you're about to spar any other top boys.'

"I put music on, he came in, and I didn't say hello. And then we sparred. I went all out and we just kept that same energy throughout camp."

Jake Paul gives his prediction for Anthony Joshua fight

Paul is supremely confident coming into Saturday's bout in Miami. Speaking on The Pat McAfee Show this month, he gave his prediction.

"I don't think he can knock me out because he's not going to be able to line up his shots properly to land the hard punch," he said.

"I think it's going to be a very tough fight for multiple rounds, but then, when I figure out his pacing, his style, his speed, his footwork, he's going to get a little bit tired trying to chase me around, and then I'm going to set up the shot."

Paul added: "I'm not going to say exactly what, but I see what it is, and I think it'll end in the fifth or sixth round."