Jake Paul is making a “mockery” of boxing as he takes on the near-impossible challenge of fighting Anthony Joshua in a heavyweight bout, says contender Jermaine Franklin.
Franklin went the distance with Joshua in 2023 after being held to a contentious majority decision defeat by Dillian Whyte the previous year.
He's picked up good wins over Ivan Dychko most recently, Jerry Forrest and more. In January he'll fight the rising star of the heavyweight division Moses Itauma.
Franklin was unimpressed to see Joshua's bout with Jake Paul, a YouTuber turned fighter, confirmed.
"I think it's rubbish. I understand it's for money, so it is what it is. But I don't think it's needed. I understand Jake Paul brings money into the sport but boxing's got to stop letting him do all this," Franklin told SportNews.
Paul is a cruiserweight in the early stages of a professional boxing career. He has fought prizefighters, beating Julio Cesar Chavez Jr, once a middleweight champion, but he's also lost to Tommy Fury.
His only outing at heavyweight saw him box Mike Tyson, the then 58-year-old legend, in an event that proved to be a huge draw.
He has though never fought anyone like Anthony Joshua. The 36-year-old was a London 2012 Olympic gold medallist and has twice been a unified world heavyweight champion.
He will fight Paul with proper competition gloves, but there will be a cap on Joshua's weight. He can't be over 245lbs for the bout.
"I never heard of a catchweight at heavyweight," Franklin said dismissively.
He warned it could harm Joshua's reputation. "It hurts him but at this point in his career he's probably not going to make that money from a fight," the American fighter said. "Outside of that though there's really no point."
He said of Paul: "You're not going to get no respect as a boxer until you start acting like a boxer.
"Jake's coming into the sport and making a mockery of it. Making a complete mockery of it. Now what he does with his other fighters, like [Amanda] Serrano, I appreciate it," he continued. "She's a real fighter but you're not a real fighter.
"Doesn't feel natural, doesn't feel real."
Franklin's bout with Itauma will take place on January 24. The American fully expects to give Itauma the hardest fight of his young career.
"I try to see what he can do well and what he doesn't do well and then I use my experience to be able to trap him in place or capitalise when he makes those mistakes," Franklin said.
"When you're going hard for five or six rounds and then you've got to go another five or six rounds, your body starts to wear down a little bit. Why am I feeling like this? It can play mental games on you if you're not physically ready.
"I already know what it feels like," he continued. "It's going to be a big shock. It's not going to affect him too much until he starts getting hit. When he starts getting hit in the later rounds, his body's going to start reacting. Once you don't have the same energy, your body kind of reacts differently."
Franklin warned: "I'm going to be the only tough opponent he's actually had. You guys are going to see me beat up on him.
"I feel like I'm going to be able to show stuff that I never got to show before."
