Jake Paul has reacted after Anthony Joshua floored former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou in less than two rounds.
Paul, who defeated Ryan Bourland in San Juan, Puerto Rico to begin the month of March, took to ‘X’ (formerly Twitter) and gave props to Joshua for maximizing under tremendous pressure.
RELATED: Anthony Joshua KO’s Francis Ngannou in Round 2 (Video)
Francis Ngannou is one of the greatest fighters of all time. Respect due.
Anthony Joshua is back.
Activity & focus drives dominance.— Jake Paul (@jakepaul) March 9, 2024
“Francis Ngannou is one of the greatest fighters of all time,” Jake Paul wrote. “Anthony Joshua is back. Activity & focus drives dominance.”
Jake Paul will face 57-year-old heavyweight boxing icon, Mike Tyson, in Dallas, Tex. in July. It will be Netflix’s first major sporting event to air live.
Similarly to Paul, Joshua is at the peak of his dominance, as the Ngannou KO victory sets him up for a colossal heavyweight tilt next against the Tyson Fury-Oleksandr Usyk winner. The pair is set to meet May 18, which will see all of the lineal heavyweight titles get contested to see who the best pound-for-pound big man is.
It is unclear if and when the fight will occur, as the Fury-Usyk bout was moved from February to May due to a Fury eye injury suffered in training less than a month removed from competition.
For now, heavyweight boxing is at a peak arguably not seen for the better part of two decades. And, holistically, Joshua’s dominance could be what is needed to reinvigorate a once-dead brand that was at a standstill in the mid-2000s and for a portion of the 2010s.
For what it’s worth, Paul and Joshua are on their own path of least resistance. Loved or hated, it gets people to care again, and, in boxing, that’s all it really needs. A spark.
It remains to be seen what the future holds for the heavyweight division, but if Jake Paul is praising it, boxing has done its due diligence.
What are your thoughts on Jake Paul’s comments?
