George Groves gives honest opinion on Anthony Joshua’s legacy after Jake Paul fight

On December 19, the boxing world all stopped to watch Anthony Joshua vs Jake Paul live on Netflix from the Kaseya Center in Miami. The build-up was full of intrigue, with many wondering what Joshua had left and whether Paul could absorb the huge punch power of the Brit.

The former two-time unified heavyweight champion looked tentative in the first few rounds, with his timing off, which is not too much of a surprise after 15 months out of the ring. Paul refused to engage for much of the fight and almost ran for four rounds until he began to tire, with Joshua landing a huge right hand in round six, giving Paul a double broken jaw, leaving him unable to beat the referee’s count. 

Former super middleweight world champion George Groves has spoken to BetVictor Casino, giving his honest opinion regarding Joshua’s legacy.

Anthony Joshua vs Jake Paul – criticism and praise

Anthony Joshua vs Jake Paul received plenty of criticism before, with both fighters receiving negative feedback following the fight, with some feeling Joshua should have stopped Paul earlier, despite Paul’s negative tactics and Joshua’s ring inactivity.

Ultimately, Joshua got the stoppage, landing a big right hand, while Paul received praise from some for lasting six rounds with Joshua.

George Groves discusses Anthony Joshua’s legacy

Many have said Joshua’s legacy is damaged by taking the fight against Paul and by not knocking him out sooner. Talking to BetVictor Casino, Groves discussed Joshua’s legacy and how the fight played out:

“I don’t think it will hurt Joshua’s legacy that he went six rounds. If anything, I’m half relieved for him that he did end up chinning Paul, because there could have been a point where he just couldn’t land on him, and then he might have got more and more frustrated, tightened up, not found the shot. Joshua’s got to come out of this and be relieved, really, more so than anything else.

“It was almost the best thing that could have happened for Joshua because there were periods where you thought he might not have stopped him, it might have gone the distance, because Paul was running and spoiling.

“It’s impossible to knock someone out when they don’t wanna engage. Especially for heavyweights, because Joshua’s got a big rig to move around the ring. But Paul gassed. I’m shocked that his fitness was not up to scratch for an eight-rounder,” said Groves.