Jake Paul and Anthony Joshua had some much hype coming into their Netflix boxing fight Friday night in Miami, Florida.
However, fans in attendance and around the world were highly disappointed with the showing when the two heavyweight stars stepped into the ring.
Anthony Joshua came away with a sixth-round knockout of Paul, which was certainly longer than the Englishman wanted the fight to go. Prior to stepping into the ring, Joshua maintained that anything other than a first-round win would be a disappointment.
Jake Paul was seen dancing around the ring for most of the night despite landing a few quality jabs. His showmanship and dodging ability largely contributed to the YouTube star lasting as long as he did.
Joshua was quick to thank the crowd after the fight before stating that his goal was to “hurt Jake Paul.” The two-time heavyweight champion stayed gracious with his victory and called out Tyson Fury after the victory.
For the first time in the ring in over 15 months, Anthony Joshua bounced back from his shocking loss to Daniel Dubois. The fight marked the second time Joshua has competed on American soil after previously losing to Andy Ruiz years ago.
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Meanwhile, Paul picks up his second professional loss after previously losing to Tommy Fury. The younger Paul brother surprised fans by being gracious in defeat, however, he did state he will be a champion in the future.
Jake Paul talked a big game before his bout with Anthony Joshua on Friday, but his controversial approach left fans frustrated and even the announcing team angry at times.
Paul lost on a sixth-round knockout, but not before fans grew upset at several falls that Paul took in what some saw as an attempt to extend the match. The former YouTube star turned boxer came into the fight as a big underdog and was able to make it six rounds against the former Olympic champion, but not before sparking some major backlash among fans.
Paul’s approach sparked a big backlash, with many fans taking to social media to mock his several falls.
Announcers for the Netflix bout called out Paul for his “putrid” approach, throwing fewer than 10 punches in several rounds. Paul fell to the canvas several times while grappling with Anthony in the fourth round, including one time when he appeared to take a knee to the groin and took several moments to return to the bout.
Paul took two falls in the fifth round, withstanding a flurry of punches just before the bell to end the round. He went down again early in the sixth round, then again with 1:33 remaining when the fight was stopped.
Paul had plenty of confidence before the bout, saying in a pre-fight press conference that he believed he was a better fighter than the Olympic gold medalist.
“On paper, the cards are stacked against me but really, in terms of boxing, I’m a better boxer than AJ which is like a hilarious thing to say but he’s got two left feet, he’s stiff,” Paul told reporters, via Bloody Elbow.
The former social media star turned boxer went on to mock Joshua, bringing his typical theatrics to the press conference.
“If I was his coach I would put him in a dance class first, before trying to box,” Paul said. “And really, just bringing in the right sparring partners to help me prepare so that I can get looks that are similar to him and that’s really just been the strategy but I’m gonna go in there and display all my skills.”
Paul told ESPN that he believed he would pull off the upset.
“I’ve studied David and Goliath going into this fight,” Paul said. “There’s a split-second moment where Goliath draws back his arrow, and that’s when David can hit him. I believe the same thing will happen here. There’s going to be a moment when Joshua is exposed, and I know I have the power to be able to beat him.”
Sanctioned Fight Sparked Controversy
Even before Paul and Anthony stepped into the ring on Friday, their fight was generating controversy. ESPN’s Mark Kriegel wrote that it was a “disgrace” that the Florida State Athletic Commission sanctioned the fight despite the massive disparities in size and experience between the fighters.
He suggested that it would have never been sanctioned had Paul been a “lesser-known 12-1 cruiserweight and not a promoter.”
“I’m not a prude here. Nor a hater,” Kriegel wrote. “I don’t expect anyone to get seriously hurt, especially not when the promoter and fighter are one and the same. My bet’s on a muffled affair in the name of commerce. But there’s still that terrible chance, and now (thank you, Florida), a terrible precedent.”
Terence Crawford hit with lawsuit over alleged breach of jewelry promotion agreement
Terence Crawford hasn’t been retired for a full week, but he’s already got another fight on his hands — albeit a legal one — ’cause the legendary boxer has been sued by a prominent jeweler who claims Bud lied to him and screwed him over.
In the lawsuit, filed on December 18 and obtained by TMZ Sports, 38-year-old Crawford is accused of hitting up Mazza New York in February 2024 for several custom pendants for him and his team (we previously reported when Bud copped ’em).
According to Mazza, Crawford became interested in a $139k Patek Philippe Aquanaut watch while in the store, but rather than buying it flat out, Mazza claims Bud suggested he pay $35k, and then would cover the rest by promoting the jewelry store on his trunks during a fight.
Mazza says he agreed, however, when Crawford’s August 2024 fight against Israil Madrimov rolled around, the jeweler claims the logo “had completely fallen off” by the 4th round.
Mazza claims that Crawford and his representatives acknowledged that they did not fulfill the agreement and promised to make it up in the next fight, which was against Canelo Alvarez.
The jeweler says he delivered a patch with his logo to Bud’s rep before the September 13 mega-fight, but says he was ultimately told the “logo would not appear on Crawford’s shorts during the Alvarez fight.”
Mazza says he wasn’t given “any reason or explanation for this sudden and unexpected change” regarding the patch on Terence’s shorts.
By allegedly blowing off the agreement, Mazza says his business was deprived of an opportunity to elevate his brand, claiming he missed out on an estimated $1.5 million worth of promotion.
And, that’s exactly what Mazza is looking for, at a minimum, in addition to other damages.
The harsh truth behind Terence Crawford’s career stopped mattering – here’s why
Terence Crawford has retired from boxing with a perfect record and a secure legacy, in a business where very few get to walk away with both of those things.
Crawford is now 38, he is unbeaten in 42 fights, and during his 18 years in the ring he won versions of world titles at five different weights; he managed to become the undisputed champion – the holder of all four recognised belts – at three weights.
Crawford’s boxing career ended in front of over 70,000 people when he beat Canelo Alvarez just three months ago, but it had started in obscurity over four rounds in hotel lounges. He was just another dreamer, a kid from Omaha with wild ambition, but no gimmick.
Finally, in 2013, he had a break; he was 19-0 at the time, but had only been in four-, six- and eight-round fights in boxing’s lost and forgotten outposts. He was matched with the devastating puncher, Breidis Prescott, in Las Vegas. Crawford accepted the fight at short notice and won all 10 rounds, and his long and hard road to recognition was over. The unknown kid from Omaha had arrived.
Just two fights and one year later, Crawford travelled to Scotland to beat Ricky Burns and win the WBO lightweight title. Crawford was the underdog in that fight; it went the full 12 rounds, and it was the start of a truly extraordinary sequence of 20 consecutive world-title fights. Crawford has maintained Burns was “the greatest fight of my career”.
Crawford started his world-championship reign at lightweight and finished against Alvarez at super-middleweight. He eased through the divisions, becoming undisputed champion at super-lightweight, welterweight and super-middleweight. Last summer he won the interim WBO super-lightweight title.
It means he dominated for 12 years, across the weight chasm of 135lb to 168lb.
Crawford also stopped or knocked out 15 of the 20 men he beat in world-title fights. He was known as a boxer, but those numbers make him a banger.
The harsh truth is that it took Crawford a long, long time to become a high-profile champion. He was in good fights, often against good fighters, but at that time he lacked the respect he believed he was owed. It took a considerable amount of time and fights to get the respect he deserved.
Crawford blamed promoters, and the promoters blamed Crawford. “It’s their job to promote me,” he said during his ugly split with Bob Arum. He was, it must be said, reluctant at times to embrace the glitzy side of the business. “I lost money on his fights,” Arum countered.
Crawford had seven fights at super-lightweight, which is also known as light-welterweight, and in 2017 he became an undisputed champion for the first time. However, stoppage wins against men like Thomas Dulorme, Dierry Jean, Hank Lundy and Julius Indongo hardly raised his profile outside the business. Still, his standing inside the game was high and his qualities were appreciated.
The move to welterweight in 2018 changed the judgement and shifted the spotlight considerably in his direction. The stoppage win over Amir Khan in six easy rounds at Madison Square Garden in 2019 was the type of win that he needed – it was a win against a high-profile fighter, a man with status, a man with a name.
There was then a trio of stoppage wins against former champions and a leading contender; the three fights were, due to Covid, spread over three years and they changed the way everybody in the business looked at Crawford. He stopped Kell Brook in four, Shawn Porter in 10 and David Avanesyan in six rounds.
It also helped that Crawford at welterweight had a fancied and dangerous natural rival in Errol Spence Jr, who held the three other belts at the weight.
Spence Jr was unbeaten in 28 fights but was troubled away from the ring, and when they met in 2023 it was a ‘50-50 fight’ in billing. But, as it turned out, not in the ring on the night, it was a mismatch. Crawford won in round nine of a shutout and Spence Jr was dropped three times. Spence Jr has not fought since, and Crawford has only boxed once each year in the last six years.
The simple method of preservation has helped him; the careful selection of fights in his early championship reign also helped Crawford grow old effortlessly. He is a fresh 38, not a man battling to recapture the speed and timing of his youth.
Last summer, Crawford had a hard 12-round win over Israil Madrimov for the WBO interim super-light title; it looked like he had reached the ceiling of his weight gain. On the night against Madrimov, he was 19lb heavier than he had been a decade earlier against Burns in his first world-title fight. It felt like Crawford’s power and skill had diminished with the weight gain, and that he would not go any higher.
Everybody was wrong – Crawford had a grand plan, a goodbye fight to defy sensible thinking.
He hibernated for about 10 months, agreed terms for the Alvarez fight, gained around 12lb in muscle across his back and shoulders, and put on a masterclass in front of over 70,000 to become the undisputed champion at a third weight.
His retirement was a shock, but it makes sense. He is one of the best modern fighters. He is, perhaps, the last of the great fighters to rule at his various weights with such majesty, after an obscure start in the business.
But his rivalry with Fury has once again become a sideshow this week, as reports gather pace that the pair are set to do battle in 2026.
Fury posted a video on his Instagram story branding his long-term foe a ‘classless loser’, in response to Joshua’s suggestion he will ‘kill’ Paul if given the opportunity.
Tiger Woods, Charlie Woods playing status for the 2025 PNC Championship
He wasn’t able to play in his own event in the Bahamas and he’s a scratch at a popular family event.
Tiger Woods, who ruptured an Achilles earlier this year, also had (another) back surgery in October and that’s what’s keeping him on the shelf for now.
Will Tiger Woods play in the 2025 PNC Championship?
Ahead of the Hero World Challenge earlier this month, Tiger told the gathered media that he and son Charlie Woods will not play in the 2025 PNC Championship, Dec. 20-21, at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club, Orlando, Grande Lakes in Florida.
He also spoke about his injuries, his playing status, what his 2026 might look like and more. But the reality, he said, is it’s premature to put a timeline on his return.
“Not as fast as I’d like it to be,” he said
The PNC event has been a staple in Woods’ calendar in recent years, affording him a chance to play with his son but he made it clear there’s no reason to force it this time around.
“It wouldn’t be fair. Not only it wouldn’t be fair to my son, but it wouldn’t be fair to another team that could play and could have that experience that we’ve had for a number of years,” Woods said.
This is PNC Bank’s 14th year as the tournament’s title sponsor, having recently renewed its commitment to the event as title sponsor in a multi-year deal. The event was renamed the PNC Championship in 2020, reflecting the world-class talent and special bonds that characterize this inclusive family tournament.
To qualify for the PNC Championship, players must have won a major championship or the Players Championship. Their partner must not hold any playing status on a professional Tour.
Last year, Team Woods, making its fifth appearance in the family event, went toe-to-toe with Bernhard Langer, 67, and his 24-year-old son Jason down the stretch at The Ritz-Carlton Golf Club. The two teams finished the event knotted at 28 under. It marked the first playoff for Woods in more than a decade.
Tiger called it the thrill of a lifetime. Charlie called it the most fun he’s ever had on a golf course.
On the eve of Jake Paul vs Anthony Joshua, promoter Eddie Hearn has confirmed the size of the ring that will be used for Friday’s fight – and it has become a major talking point.
There are certain stipulations in place as natural cruiserweight Paul moves up to heavyweight. For the first time in his career, Joshua has a strict contracted weight limit ahead of the eight-round bout.
The 36-year-old, who weighed just over 252lbs for his fight against Daniel Dubois last year, cannot weigh more than 245lbs, although there is no restriction on how much weight he can put on after the official weigh-in.
As well as AJ’s weight, Eddie Hearn was recently asked about the specific rules for this weekend’s clash.
“Same as any professional fight, you know, and we wouldn’t do anything different, which is eight rounds, 10 ounce gloves, eight three minute rounds,” Hearn told Forbes. “The weight is 245 pounds, but that’s just because Jake’s coming up from cruiserweight.”
Joshua’s team had ‘no interest’ in anything other than legitimate professional boxing rules, according to Hearn.
Eddie Hearn confirms ring size for Jake Paul vs Anthony Joshua
With two days until fight night, Hearn has confirmed to IFL TV that the ring size for Jake Paul vs Anthony Joshua will be 22×22 feet, which is bigger than the standard size for professional bouts, which is 20×20 feet.
Here’s how fans on social media reacted to the news.
One said: “More space for Jake Paul to run away into. AJ with 10oz gloves he better move quick,” while a second commented: “Yeah so Jake Paul can run away around the ring and try avoid Joshua’s right hand.”
A third wrote: “I doubt a 21% bigger ring is going to make that much of a difference. It might let Jake run around a bit more freely but the issue is, for Jake to be in range, he has to also be in range for AJ. He’s screwed either way.”
A fourth said: “Plenty of space for Jake Paul to hide,” and a fifth added: “There will be a lot of running.”
The points victory suggested Haney had put his previous two outings — against Ryan Garcia and Arnold Barboza — firmly behind him, and his father wasted little time in calling out one of the sport’s biggest names.
In a video with Fight Hub TV, Bill Haney had a message for Gervonta Davis and his team, offering ‘Tank’ the chance to face his son for his new WBO welterweight title next year.
“Coach Calvin [Ford], Coach [Ellis], Team Tank Davis, I got some good news and I got some bad news. The good news is Devin bought me another Mercedes. Another one. The bad news is the Grinch didn’t buy you guys one, but ‘Deebo’ is looking for him and he’s on the list. So let’s see if in 2026 you can’t influence your man to be more like [Devin].”
Davis currently holds the WBA lightweight title, but a move 12lbs north to 147 to face Haney would not necessarily be considered a stretch as “Tank” had been set to challenge cruiserweight crossover star Jake Paul last month month before the bout was cancelled amid serious allegations made against Davis.
However, Haney doesn’t seem to be on Davis’ radar as he recently announced a rematch with Isaac Cruz is his preferred option.
Jake Paul hits back at Deontay Wilder over claims that Anthony Joshua fight is ‘scripted’
Jake Paul is threatening legal action for Deontay Wilder after he claimed this Friday’s super-fight could be somehow ‘scripted’.
Baseless claims around Paul’s bouts being fixed in some way tend to circulate for every fight. But no event has been affected more so than this weekend on Netflix when he faces Anthony Joshua at the Kaseya Center in Miami.
There is a belief that Paul and Joshua is such a mismatch that anything other than a quick knockout for the Brit means the fix is in. However, this would be a federal crime, and Paul has hired top legal aid to help battle defamatory claims that he is engaged in rigged boxing matches.
Jake Paul slams Deontay Wilder over claims his fight with Anthony Joshua is rigged
Jake Paul and Anthony Joshua came head-to-head this evening for the first time on fight week as they completed their final press conference. The size difference is still as clear as ever, but the American is now beginning to drop his respectful tone and start going at his opponent and others.
One man who drew his ire was Deontay Wilder, who during his visit to Dubai last week told Bloody Elbow and others that he fears the fix may be in for this Friday’s show. There is no basis for this claim, and Paul has frequently made explicit and prolonged denials.
Asked what answer he gives to those who claim the bout is rigged, he replied: “I give them a cease and desist letter through their door. Then the lawsuit is coming right after because these people will not stop lying.
“I honestly take it as a compliment but people need to shut the f— up. As for Deontay Wilder, he’s been hit a lot by Tyson Fury so he’s clearly not the smartest guy. There’s nothing in the contract, AJ can attest to it that we’re going to war. At the end of the day, that’s what all of my fights have been like.”
Joshua also briefly replied to the accusation, insisting that the bout is fully legitimate and that there is “nothing in the contract” stopping him obliterating Paul.
What Novak Djokovic said the umpire shouldn’t have done after Serena Williams controversy at the US Open in 2018
Novak Djokovic gave his say after Serena Williams was involved in controversy at the 2018 US Open.
Both Djokovic and Williams reached their respective singles finals at the US Open that year, but they had very different outcomes.
Williams was beaten by Naomi Osaka in her final, which was marred with controversy after she was given a game penalty for branding chair umpire Carlos Ramos ‘a thief’.
After Djokovic beat Juan Martin del Potro to win the US Open men’s singles title, he was asked for his verdict on the situation.
How Novak Djokovic reacted to the Serena Williams controversy at the 2018 US Open
Williams initially received a warning for coaching, before being docked a point after smashing her racket.
This led to Williams branding Ramos ‘a thief’, to which she was docked a game, before Osaka would beat her to claim her first Grand Slam title.
Williams received a lot of criticism for her behaviour in this final, but Djokovic was not willing to continue the backlash and instead claimed that chair umpire Ramos should not have pushed her so far.
“Look, I love Serena, first of all. I really felt for her yesterday,” Djokovic said in his press conference after winning the US Open in 2018. “Tough thing for a chair umpire to deal with, as well. We have to empathize with him. Everyone was in a very awkward situation yesterday. A lot of emotions. Serena was crying. Naomi was crying. It was really, really tough.
“But I have my personal opinion that maybe the chair umpire should not have pushed Serena to the limit, especially in a Grand Slam final. Just maybe changed — not maybe, but he did change the course of the match. Was, in my opinion, maybe unnecessary. We all go through our emotions, especially when you’re fighting for a Grand Slam trophy.
“But I don’t think it’s time and place really to get into other subjects. I don’t see things as Mr. [Steve] Simon (WTA Chairman at the time) does. I really don’t. I think men and women are, you know, treated in this way or the other way depending on the situation. It’s hard to generalize things, really. I don’t see it’s necessary really to debate that.
“I just feel like, as Serena said yesterday in the closing ceremonies, Osaka deserves to have her moment. As for Serena, she knows I love her. She really inspires everyone. To see her still being so dedicated and so committed to this sport, it’s inspiring really to me and to many tennis players, both men and women, around the world.”
What Serena Williams said when Novak Djokovic was disqualified at the US Open
Just two years later, Djokovic was involved in a controversy of his own at the US Open after being disqualified from his fourth round match against Pablo Carreno Busta.
This came after Djokovic inadvertently hit the line judge with the ball in her neck area, which was perhaps the biggest talking point of the 2020 tournament.
The roles were reversed on this occasion, and Williams was asked what she thought about Djokovic’s disqualification.
However, Williams was not willing to give her opinion on the situation and gave a short response to the question.
“I’m not going to touch that,” Williams said in her post-match press conference. “I’m going to leave that to you guys. I’m just not touching it.”
