Dana White blasts Anthony Joshua vs. Jake Paul bout. UFC President Dana White hasn’t held back in his criticism of the recent boxing showdown between influencer-turned-boxer Jake Paul and former two-time world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua, calling the matchup “crazy” and suggesting it shouldn’t have been sanctioned in the first place.
The fight, which took place on December 19, 2025 at the Kaseya Center in Miami and ended in a sixth-round knockout victory for Joshua. Paul suffered a broken jaw and was left recovering.
Paul, who built his boxing profile largely through celebrity matches and crossover events, stepped into the ring with Joshua after the original opponent, Gervonta Davis, was removed from the card due to legal issues. Despite early success landing punches, Paul was dominated over the later round as Joshua’s professional boxing experience took over.
“It’s crazy that that fight was even allowed to happen,” White told Complex. Although White acknowledged that Paul has built an impressive 14-fight boxing record, he emphasised that matchups should reflect competitive balance rather than spectacle.
White also made it clear that while he personally doesn’t approve of or participate in that style of promotion, he understands that as long as people are willing to pay to watch Paul fight, the bouts will continue.
“As long as people keep wanting to pay and watch him fight, I guess he can keep doing it,” White said. “It’s just not what I do. To even comment on it, I think everyone that was involved in that thing should be embarrassed, No. 1. And No. 2, it’s just not what I’m into. Not my thing.”
Despite the defeat and White’s blunt assessment, Paul hasn’t signalled an end to his boxing ambitions. Following the loss, he posted a clipped knockout reel on social media captioned “RIGGED?”, a tongue-in-cheek response to critics, and hinted at plans for future fights once he recovers from his jaw injury.
At the end of the day, White’s message was clear. He believes fights should be fair, competitive, and earned, not just made for attention.
