Deontay Wilder reveals trait he and Jake Paul share in rare praise before Anthony Joshua clash

Deontay Wilder believes that only he and Jake Paul are willing to face opponents considerably bigger than them – starting with Anthony Joshua.

The former heavyweight champion has been chasing a fight with Joshua for years, but will now have to watch as his rival takes on Paul on Friday night in Miami. He is concerned that the event will be more of a scripted showcase than anything, but if it is legitimate, the social media star is in for a beating.

However, he admits that he respects Paul for being willing to step up and fight Joshua, who towers over him and will likely be heavier on fight night by over 40lb. And speaking with Bloody Elbow at the IBA Boxing World Championships, he expressed how he and Paul are the only two taking such risks.

Deontay Wilder shows respect for Jake Paul’s courage against Anthony Joshua

Despite standing at a massive 6’7″, Deontay Wilder has competed in heavyweight world title bouts at as low as 213lb. It has meant giving up monstrous size weight disparities, not dissimilar to what Jake Paul will do against Anthony Joshua.

For example, his first fight with Tyson Fury – the only one which he didn’t lose – he allowed the Brit a 44lb advantage and still managed to topple him twice. “The only person I know that has done what Jake Paul is trying to do with AJ is me,” he explained in an exclusive chat.

“In terms of weight classes, the difference is like 215lb and Joshua is 250lb…. I fight guys who are 20, 30, even 40, 50 or 60lb heavier than me and I do it without any hesitation whatsoever – I ain’t never seen no other fighter do it like that.

“Take for a prime example the first fight with Fury – after that fight I became like 205lb with all the weight loss and that just tells you about the mentality. So with that being said, that’s a lot of weight and this is heavyweight boxing.

“The head is not meant to be hit and one punch can end a career. I think Paul is taking that in consideration and if it’s not scripted then I think Joshua is going to do what he’s supposed to do.”