Anthony Joshua has clarified comments he made that proved controversial this week, having said ahead of his fight with Jake Paul: “If I can kill you, I will kill you.”

Joshua, a former two-time world heavyweight champion, fights YouTuber-turned-boxer Paul on Friday, and Tyson Fury was among those to criticise “AJ” for his pre-fight words.

Fury, who remains linked to a much-desired fight with his fellow Briton, called Joshua a “classless loser”, but AJ moved to clarify his comments at the final press conference for Friday’s bout in Miami.

“That’s my job, we fight,” Joshua said. “We have a licence to kill. Many people don’t understand it, but this is what my job is.”

Concerns have been raised about the disparity in size, experience, and class between Joshua, 36, and Paul, 28.

Joshua is set to take on Paul, a cruiserweight rookie with a record of 12-1, in a heavyweight bout scheduled for eight three-minute rounds.

Still, Paul said he was unfazed by the challenge: “I’m ready. I want his hardest punches.”

Paul, who earlier this week said he wanted to create the biggest upset in sporting history by defeating Joshua, also shared a wishlist of future opponents, including Fury, Terence Crawford – who retired this week – and Canelo Alvarez.

“No one’s done more for the sport of boxing in the last decade than myself,” Paul said of Friday’s match-up. “I think if people really cared about boxing, they’d want me to win.”

The bout between Joshua and Paul will not be an exhibition but rather a professional contest, meaning the result will go on each man’s record and a knockout is possible.

Joshua’s record stands at 28-4 (25 KO wins), and the Briton has beaten the likes of Wladimir Klitschko, Dillian Whyte, Joseph Parker, Alexander Povetkin and Kubrat Pulev, while also facing Oleksandr Usyk and Daniel Dubois at the elite level.

Joshua has not fought since September 2024, when he was knocked out by Dubois at Wembley Stadium, suffering four knockdowns en route to defeat – the fourth loss of his career and second by stoppage.

Paul, meanwhile, is 12-1 (7 KO wins) as a professional and has defeated – among others – former boxing world champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr, former UFC champions Tyron Woodley and Anderson Silva, and heavyweight boxing icon Mike Tyson, who was 58 at the time they fought.

Additional reporting by PA