Lennox Lewis has assessed Anthony Joshua‘s performance against Jake Paul ahead of a potential battle with Tyson Fury in 2026.
Joshua fought for the first time in more than a year last weekend and took six rounds to stop Paul, who was largely running and holding on until he began to tire. The finishing right hand broke Paul’s jaw in two places and left the referee no choice but to stop the contest.
Speaking to Mail Sport Boxing, former world heavyweight champion Lewis was asked what he made of Joshua’s performance.
“He’s been out for 15 months so obviously he felt a but rusty in there and as you can see as the rounds went along, he got better.”
He was then asked if people would be disappointed that Joshua didn’t stop Paul sooner.
“Yeah, they will, of course, everybody’s not happy. I thought he was going to get him out in the second round but he’s been out for 15 months so you can really expect the best in a couple of rounds.
With a potential showdown with Fury on the horizon, Lewis then revealed whether Joshua was showing enough to be victorious in that one.
“That kind of performance, no, it wouldn’t hold up against Tyson Fury but at least he got the cobwebs off. He’s just getting user to Team Usyk, this is his first fight with then so he’s working up to it.”
Lewis then agreed another fight in the interim would be good for both men.
“Yes I would, yes, that would be a good thing to do. Both of them need a tune-up.”
Joshua immediately called out Fury in the ring after his win, which suggests he may be keen to go straight into the fight, while Fury technically remains retired and has not fought since he second consecutive loss to Oleksandr Usyk back in December 2024.
