Jake Paul has a lot of options.
After setting state and viewership records with his fight against Mike Tyson on Friday, November 15, fighters are coming out of the woodwork to challenge the YouTuber-turned-boxer. Even former pound-for-pound king Andre Ward dared Paul to “say my name.”
One of the latest and seemingly more serious requests came from undisputed light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev. The undefeated Russian has made two overtures to fight Paul but is seemingly being ignored.
Beterbiev said he was “open to any suggestions,” then doubled down on the possibility of fighting Paul, saying, “after four years it’s time to have serious challenges. Didn’t notice your acceptance or rejection. So what are we gonna do?”
Paul hasn’t formally said yes or no to Beterbiev, but he did show some interest in fighting IBF heavyweight champion Daniel Dubois. Paul revealed a direct message from Dubois inviting him to fight for the IBF title.
Paul said he would have his business partner Nakisa Bidarian reach out to Dubois’ promoter Frank Warren, but the fight is doubtful. The IBF isn’t likely to allow Dubois to put their title on the line against a fighter who isn’t ranked in the governing body’s Top 15–even one as famous as Paul.
Also, Dubois is a 27-year-old beast of a heavyweight coming off a savage KO win over Anthony Joshua. Dubois is at the peak of his career, and quite frankly, that fight would be a massive mismatch in his favor.
Ditto for Beterbiev, whom Paul took a shot at in his response to Dubois.
While Beterbiev is a light heavyweight, he is one of the most devastating punchers in the sport. He has a professional record of 21-0 with 20 KOs. The only man to escape a TKO/KO loss was Dmitry Bivol, one of the most skilled boxers in the world.
Beterbiev would likely punish Paul the way his haters are thirsty to see. That’s precisely why it won’t happen.
Call Paul what you want, but you can never rightfully accuse him of being stupid. He’s a calculated businessman and expert promoter who perfectly executes a business plan that involves fighting as many high-profile, low-risk opponents as possible.
He’s capitalizing on his fame and the notoriety of his opponents. The job of the promotion–at least against guys like Tyson, Anderson Silva, and Nate Diaz—is to convince the public that Paul’s opponents have a chance to win.
There’s always a slight chance, but prospective matchmaking is done by people who know the sport well. There are also analysts who speak to experts about the viewership ceiling and floor of an event with X-opponent.
This process is chess, not checkers.
Meanwhile, Paul and his opponents collect handsome paydays because of the interest that has been drummed up during the build. Paul reportedly made $40 million, and Tyson collected $20 million for their fight, viewed by more than 108 million people on Netflix, per MVP.
It’s a proven strategy and one that Beterbiev doesn’t fit into.
He’s too good and obscure an opponent for the juice to be worth the squeeze. If you’re looking for someone who might fit the mold for Paul’s next fight, it could be Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. The second-generation fighter specifically called Paul out following the Tyson fight.
“@jakepaul You say you can fight anyone you wants!!,” JCCJr wrote in a caption of an image that shows Paul walking past him on a stage for a recent press event. “which is probably true for the money !! but he won’t fight someone who knows how to fight @jcchavezjr It’s time, Jake.”
Chavez Jr. has the best chance to get the fight of any of the people who have called Paul out.
He is the son of an icon and a former world champion who has over 750,000 followers on Instagram. Chavez Jr. is also 38 years old and considered one of the more disappointing would-be stars in recent boxing history.
Fighting Chavez Jr. would be the right kind of challenge for Paul at this point in his career, and it would be easy to promote. Don’t be shocked if that fight is next.
