Heavyweight Wallin claims that Joshua’s strength poses a serious threat to Paul
Heavyweight Otto Wallin told Reuters that Jake Paul, a former YouTuber, will be in for a nasty surprise when he fights Anthony Joshua on December 19. He described Joshua as the hardest striker he has ever encountered.
Even though Wallin lost both of his amateur matches against Joshua, he continued to press for a professional fight, which was held in Riyadh in December 2023.
After five rounds, Wallin’s corner ended the bout, leaving the large Swede with some unpleasant memories.
Because Joshua hits so hard, I believe it would be risky for Jake Paul to confront him. Wallin remarked, “I know that—he hits like no one I’ve ever faced,” with a hint of disbelief that the battle was actually happening.
“I don’t understand why Jake Paul is taking this fight – they must be seriously underestimating Joshua, but I don’t think I’ll believe the fight is happening until they’re actually in the ring.”
The 36-year-old Joshua dominated Paul, who typically competes at cruiserweight, during a recent press conference to promote the fight, which is scheduled to take place in Miami over eight three-minute rounds.
The fight is advantageous for Joshua for Wallin, who made his name by showing incredible bravery by going the distance against Tyson Fury in Las Vegas in 2019.
“He’s up against a poor cruiserweight. Joshua will profit much from what should be a straightforward victory. It’s a risky sport, and Paul might be seriously hurt and knocked out in this bout,” he stated.
Wallin claims that even though he took a lot of hard shots from Fury during their epic fight, “AJ,” who has won 25 of his 28 professional fights by knockout, is unquestionably much more dangerous. He cites Joshua’s second-round knockout of former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou as proof.
“Joshua is the hardest-hitting person I’ve ever met. “He’s bigger, stronger, and better than Jake Paul—just look at what he did against Ngannou,” he remarked.
Even though Paul and other “influencer boxers” have been derided by many in the boxing community, Wallin has already expressed his admiration for them and how they are drawing new fans to the sport, but he doesn’t think Paul has a chance against a former world champion.
“I think that Joshua wins pretty easily and pretty quickly – he knocked out Ngannou in two rounds, and Jake Paul won’t take that long either,” he stated.
