AJ disappointed, but Paul is to blame for a boxing farce

Yes, Anthony Joshua was quite underwhelming by his own admission, but Jake Paul's approach to the fight is what should really leave a sour taste in the mouth

- Alex Pattle

First things first: you’re allowed to be disappointed, angry, or even jealous. Such feelings are always valid when professionals are paid so handsomely for turning in the kind of work performance that would have others fearing for their jobs. That’s what happened on Friday night in Miami. And yes, Anthony Joshua underperformed by his own admission, but if you're expending the majority of your energy on him, I'm afraid you got his fight with Jake Paul completely wrong.

The craving was intense for Joshua, a former two-time world heavyweight champion, to make Paul a meme by leaving him staring up at the lights in the Kaseya Center. Many wanted to see that happen inside 30 seconds. Many said that “AJ” going four or more rounds with this YouTuber-turned-boxer would ruin his legacy. Hell, many said this fight would be rigged - a claim easily disproved but spouted repeatedly regardless.

Truthfully, many of these desires and predictions betrayed a fundamental lack of understanding of boxing, and that is not meant condescendingly. There was always going to be a lot of “I told you so” yesterday, regardless of what happened between Joshua and Paul. If Joshua, 36, had erased his opponent in 30 seconds, it would have been “I told you so”; if Paul, 28, had survived the full eight rounds, it would have been “I told you so”.