Fans Will Yell ‘Rigged’ If Jake Paul Upsets Joshua

Shawn Porter says fans will say the Anthony Joshua vs. Jake Paul fight was “rigged” if AJ loses on December 19th. He’s not supposed to lose to a former YouTuber who started boxing late.

Porter points out that Joshua (28-4, 25 KOs) is a 2012 Olympic gold medalist, and he shouldn’t be losing to the former Disney actor in their fight on Netflix. But Jake has been training hard all the time, and has great coaching and top-notch sparring partners.

Rigged Talk Incoming

“I’m telling you right now. If this fight doesn’t go the way everybody thinks it should go, everybody is going to say boxing is rigged. This is not good for boxing,” said Shawn Porter to K.O Artist Sport about the Anthony Joshua vs. Jake Paul fight.

Fans may not understand how Joshua could lose. If he doesn’t retire afterward, they’ll realize that Jake’s victory wasn’t rigged and more a product of AJ being long in the tooth and not that great to begin with. He got knocked down four times in his last fight against Daniel Dubois. That fight should have been over in round one, as Joshua was literally gone after being dropped.

“I’m on record. This is not good for boxing. Because everybody is going to say this fight is rigged if Jake Paul wins. You can’t fathom an Olympian that has done everything that Anthony has done to come up to this point in his career and lose to a YouTuber, a Disney guy.

AJ’s Wear and Tear

Joshua is 36, coming off a knockout loss and a long 15-month layoff, and he’s taken a lot of punishment. He’s not a spring chicken. Moreover, AJ didn’t have a long amateur career. Many of his wins that led to his Olympic gold medal were controversial.

If you saw his fights against Roberto Cammarelle, Erislandy Savon, Ivan Dychko, and Zhilei Zhang in the London Olympics in 2012, you’ll know he repeatedly got decisions given to him that many felt he should have lost. I had Joshua losing all four of those fights, and the final against Cammarelle was a joke. The Italian heavyweight was raked over the coals with the scoring. 

“Jake is a boxer now. He didn’t get here traditionally, but he trains his a** off. I never get to see Coach Wade because he’s always with Jake. He’s always working, and when he’s not working in the gym, he’s working in his offices. He’s going to be prepared. This fight is not designed for Jake Paul to lose,” said Porter.