Anthony Joshua to Earn ₦135 Billion in Mega Bout Against Jake Paul on December 19

Anthony Joshua to Earn ₦135 Billion in Mega Bout Against Jake Paul on December 19

Former two-time heavyweight world champion Anthony Joshua is set to pocket a staggering ₦135 billion naira (£70 million) for his upcoming fight against YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul on December 19, 2025, in Miami.

Joshua, who has not fought since his knockout loss to Daniel Dubois at Wembley 15 months ago, sees the matchup as a tune-up ahead of a potential showdown with Tyson Fury next September. Despite the enormous payday, Joshua admitted the purse will not be the biggest of his career, telling TMZ: “Unfortunately not.”

The British boxer emphasised that he must knock out Jake Paul, saying: “I can’t afford to be taken many rounds… I need to [KO Jake] and that’s my intention, to seek and destroy.”

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Joshua’s promoter, Eddie Hearn, reinforced the seriousness of the bout, describing a clear game plan: “Is there a script? Yeah, there is a script: we come out and try to knock him out clean – out cold – as soon as possible. We wanna go in there, do a job for boxing, which is what we should be doing, ironing this guy out ASAP.”

Jake Paul, who holds a 12-1 professional boxing record, recently defeated former middleweight champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr and has wins over multiple ex-UFC fighters. In November 2024, Paul outpointed 58-year-old Mike Tyson, further boosting his controversial boxing career.

In preparation for the bout, Paul has been training with heavyweight contenders Lawrence Okolie, Jared Anderson, and Frank Sanchez, while Joshua is training in Spain alongside unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk.

The fight, which will be streamed on Netflix, is expected to be one of the most-watched boxing events of the year, coming just days before Christmas, and marks a high-profile clash between a seasoned heavyweight champion and a social media superstar.

Anthony Joshua to Earn ₦135 Billion in Mega Bout Against Jake Paul on December 19