Eddie Hearn sends Jake Paul cheeky DM challenging YouTube star to accept Anthony Joshua fight THIS YEAR

EDDIE HEARN sent Jake Paul a cheeky message challenging him to fight Anthony Joshua THIS YEAR… but he was brutally left on red.

YouTuber-turned-boxer Paul has been leading private and direct talks to face AJ in 2026 after

But Joshua's promoter Hearn took to social media to ask Paul why the wait in a bid to get the

Paul's promotional partner Nakisa Bidarian told SunSport: “I think Eddie Hearn even DMd Jake and said, ‘Why not in 2025?' And I'm sure Jake didn't respond to him.

“But again, there's zero clickbait, 100 per cent desire to do it in 2026 is what makes sense from a Jake Paul career perspective.”

Bidarian referenced our interview with Hearn where the promoter revealed he had

Hearn told us: “Once they said 2026, it's just clickbait at that point.

“I do acknowledge that Jake is crazy enough, like the Canelo stuff was quite crazy.

“But at least Jake's bigger than Canelo. He's dwarfed by AJ in every manner.”

Joshua, 35, has not fought since his September knockout loss to Daniel Dubois, 27, and a

Paul, 28, meanwhile brought heavyweight great Mike Tyson, 58, out of retirement for a controversial fight on Netflix in November.

He won a points decision over eight rounds with 100 MILLION

It prompted talks for Paul to fight Canelo in his next bout and the two were close to confirming a May 3 deal to fight in Las Vegas.

But Mexican superstar Canelo, 34, to sign a bumped four-bout deal with Saudi Arabia's Turki Alalshikh.

is now looking to announce his next opponent with another fight targeted in 2025 before three bouts next year.

And Bidarian believes Joshua is a “100 per cent realistic” option for Paul next year with also joining the wish-list.

He said: “Jake hasn't been in the ring with someone that has the power that Joshua has in this current time.

“Mike Tyson, much more devastating knockout artist than Anthony Joshua in his career, but the Mike Tyson Jake fought wasn't that same Mike Tyson, obviously.

“So Jake has to get to a point where he feels confident that he can take those types of punches from someone like Joshua.

“I know from Jake's perspective, he doesn't believe that Joshua will land, but you have to be prepared that he does land and, and how do you deal with that.

“But that's what makes it exciting. I mean, yes, Joshua is a much bigger man in terms of height and reach than Mike Tyson.

“And that will possess its own challenges for Jake Paul, but Jake doesn't say something if he doesn't feel confident about it.

“He's been pretty clear, he doesn't want to fight David Benavidez. He doesn't believe he can beat David Benavidez in any time frame of his career arc.

“But, he wants to fight Canelo Alvarez, he wants to fight Anthony Joshua. Those are two names that he's dead set on and feels very good about.”