Oleksandr Usyk believes Jake Paul could be putting his life at stake by facing Anthony Joshua and admits he’ll be praying for him.
Paul will face former two-time heavyweight world champion, Joshua, whom Usyk has already beaten on two occasions, on December 19 at the Kaseya Center in Miami, live on Netflix.
Usyk faced off with ‘The Problem Child’ after stopping Daniel Dubois to regain the undisputed heavyweight crown in July and has warned the YouTuber-turned-boxer of the potential danger lying ahead of him, should ‘AJ’ turn up at his ruthless best.
“If Anthony Joshua wants, Anthony [can] kill this guy,” Usyk told media at the WBC Convention in Thailand this week.
“Anthony Joshua’s [an] Olympic champion.
“Jake Paul is a sportsman, YouTuber, showman.
“Yes I will pray for Jake Paul, because I want [to] fight with Jake Paul in [an] octagon.”
Usyk first became heavyweight champion in September 2021 when he beat Joshua by unanimous decision and followed this up with a split decision victory 11 months later.
Paul was supposed to face Gervonta Davis last month, but the bout was scrapped after Davis was accused of hitting an ex-girlfriend in a civil lawsuit.
The 28-year-old is at least a 6/1 outsider to defeat ‘AJ’, who is set to fight for the first time since a fifth round knockout loss to Dubois last September.
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Despite the odds being heavily against him, the Ohio man believes he can pull off a stunning upset and hand the 36-year-old a fifth professional defeat.
“He is one of the best heavyweights ever,” he said in the first press conference.
“But I believe fighting a smaller man is often harder for a heavyweight because of the speed difference, the footwork, the angles, the head being off-centre.
“All that power is great, but I just have to avoid that one shot for eight rounds – and I believe I can do that.
“I know I can pick him apart, score points, and make this a great contest.
“Don’t respect me just for getting in there – respect me because I’m going to win.”
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