Eddie Hearn has insisted Anthony Joshua will waste no time searching for a KO in his fight with Jake Paul.
Joshua takes on the polarising social media star on Friday night in his first return to the ring since suffering a fifth-round KO at the hands of Daniel Dubois in September 2024.
The clash has proven controversial due to concerns around safety, with AJ both significantly larger than his opponent and possessing and overwhelming advantage in terms of experience.
In the lead-up to fight, multiple commentators have speculated that Paul could look to approach the contest with a defence-first mindset, and that merely surviving beyond the first couple of rounds would represent something of a moral victory.
Hearn however, has insisted that the two-time heavyweight champion will be looking for avenues to finish the fight from the opening bell.
"AJ was going to have a run-out fight in November in Saudi," the Matchroom Boxing chairman told BBC Sport.
"It was an opportunity to wrap the hands with his new training team, do the ringwalk and go through the motions. Now we're doing that same run-out but for 50 times more money.
"We have a clear strategy in mind - to knock Jake out asap. Then we go into normal service being resumed in 2026."
Asked for his prediction on the fight, Hearn insisted that Paul will not be able to handle Joshua's vaunted KO power once the opening bell rings.
He continued: "AJ is super switched on. He's had a camp and he's training like he's fighting Oleksandr Usyk or in a Daniel Dubois rematch.
"I expect my fighter to win inside two rounds with a devastating knockout. He could hit Jake to the body and he would break his ribs and he wouldn't be able to get up.If he hits him clean, he will knock him spark out. Or the referee could jump in.
"We don't know how it could play out but with the way AJ punches - with the speed and destruction - as soon as Jake is hit on the chin, the fight is over."
In his 28 wins since turning professional, Joshua has finished his opponent inside the distance an impressive 25 times.
The London Olympics gold medallist has also claimed 13 finishes in the first two rounds, with the most recent of those coming in his devastating KO of former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou in March 2024.
