Active discussions are underway between the camps of Jake Paul and Anthony Joshua for a potential boxing match scheduled for the beginning of 2026, Nakisa Bidarian, the American's promotional partner, has confirmed.

"I think the fight can absolutely happen," Bidarian told Sky Sports, describing the potential clash as "quite biblical" and "quite impactful in many ways."

Several locations are under consideration for the bout, with Wembley Stadium emerging as a possibility alongside venues in the United States and Saudi Arabia.

Paul has expressed interest in fighting at Wembley, where Bidarian noted the YouTube personality-turned-boxer would relish facing 90,000 hostile spectators.

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Paul enters negotiations with a record of twelve victories and one defeat, having most recently defeated former middleweight champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr over ten rounds in June.

Joshua, 35, has been absent from the ring since suffering a knockout defeat to Daniel Dubois in September and has subsequently undergone elbow surgery.

"I think experience wise, Jake is learning very fast and growing, and Joshua is a little long in the tooth," Bidarian stated.

"So it could be a very interesting matchup, and we're actively discussing it with Matchroom.

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GETTY | Anthony Joshua hasn't fought since losing to Daniel Dubois back in January

"I think we're looking at it happening at the start of 2026. It's public that AJ was taking a little time away, I think he had a little surgery.

"So once he's ready, and once Jake is ready, we're going to squarely focus on that.

"It's a fight that Jake wants to do, and that's a discussion we've had at length, and he feels very confident about where he is in his career and his chances of upsetting Anthony Joshua."

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The weight differential presents a significant challenge, with Joshua weighing 18 stone in his last fight compared to Paul's usual cruiserweight limit of 14 stone 4 pounds.

Former world champion Tony Bellew has strongly condemned the proposed bout, labelling it "dangerously insane" during an interview with iFL TV.

The ex-WBC cruiserweight titleholder expressed serious concerns about the safety implications of the matchup.

iFL TV

"Money talks and bulls*** walks. We all know that phrase, we've all seen it. But this is another level. He ain't fighting a grandfather. It's absolute lunacy. It's insane. It's dangerously insane," Bellew stated.

The retired boxer, who ended his career in 2018, highlighted the substantial four-stone weight difference between the fighters as a primary source of concern.

Bellew proposed an alternative matchup for Joshua, suggesting a bout with Canelo Alvarez would generate greater interest: "Do you want to know a bigger fight to make? Canelo and Anthony Joshua. It is. You're talking about two of the faces of boxing."

The Mexican champion currently holds the undisputed super-middleweight title at 12 stone, creating an even more extreme weight gap of seven stone compared to Joshua's recent fighting weight.

Canelo has previously captured titles at light-heavyweight but has never competed in the heavyweight division, though he has hinted at potentially moving up to cruiserweight.