After Mike Tyson travesty, Jake Paul faces his first serious boxing match

Independent

6 days ago

It has been seven months since Jake Paul stood inches from the inked, sweaty, weathered face of a 58-year-old Mike Tyson, awaiting the first bell in Texas. Inside AT&T Stadium, 72,000 fans watched on, while 60 million households tuned into Netflix. It was truly a moment that felt like the extremity of the YouTuber's boxing experiment.
Not that Paul would brand it an experiment – rather a career, a lifestyle at this point, he would argue – but here was his most-accomplished opponent yet. The most cavernous venue yet. The most eyeballs so far. However, Tyson was also his oldest opponent yet, and by some margin.
Still, millions gathered around televisions and laptops and huddled over phone screens, wanting to be part of the mother of all rodeos at the home of the NFL's Dallas Cowboys. They tuned in, baying for blood, and they were not baying for Tyson's. Despite the heavyweight legend's checkered, often concerning past, they could not in good conscience root against the once-'Iron'-but-now-very-human Mike. Not with Paul in the other corner.
To many fans, Paul has been a frustrating fixture in the boxing landscape since he first fought in 2018. And while it could be argued that the former Disney Channel actor, 28, has actually roamed a landscape of his own shaping – away from the traditions of sensical matchmaking, world titles and such – he has proven unignorable. Weaponising his ability to aggravate, Paul has irked fans by beating icons of mixed martial arts, lesser-known pro boxers, and most recently the beloved Tyson.
Yet he now vows that he will eventually hold a world title, a claim dismissed by almost all in the sport, but a goal that will become a little more achievable if he is to beat Julio Cesar Chavez Jr this weekend.
Just this week, Mauricio Sulaiman, chairman of the World Boxing Council, told Action Network that the YouTuber could well earn a ranking with a win over Chavez Jr. 'My personal opinion is yes,' said Sulaiman. 'We do have a rankings committee, but I believe he has done enough. He has received all the backlash for several years; if he beats Julio Cesar Chavez Jr, I think that puts him in a different position.'
This pairing with Chavez Jr, 39, marks somewhat of a return to form for Paul in terms of his matchmaking.
While some observers clung to the hope that Tyson could be a fraction of the 'Baddest Man on the Planet' that he once was, that this would be enough to knock out Paul, it was never going to happen. The real question surrounding the bout was whether the younger American, who has committed himself to the sport more than the average person realises, would actually try to stop Tyson. Paul did not try, which was simultaneously a merciful act and the biggest issue with that carnivalesque contest: its lack of authenticity.
It was never a balanced match-up, but people believed it was, because they wished it to be. In contrast, Paul's previous contests were at least closer to ticking that box, even if they almost always leaned in his favour when put under the microscope.
Paul's sole loss, against Tommy Fury, proved the exception. It was a serious test for Paul, although it was not necessarily a serious match-up more generally, given Paul's background and the fact that Fury is not the boxer his family wants you to think he is.
Still, another serious test may wait this weekend. Opposite Paul will be Chavez Jr, who is a former world champion and the son of the legendary Julio Cesar Sr.
Those two accolades, if you will (pugilistic and... biological?), position Chavez Jr as a credible threat to Paul. The American held the WBC middleweight title from 2010 until 2012, his reign ending upon his first professional loss. At that point, he was 42-0-1, with the third digit marking a draw.
Yet look closer, and there is some reason to doubt Chavez Jr, even against Paul.
His wins, now totalling 54, are considerable in number, yet many came early in his career against soft opponents. Then there are the six losses, some against great combatants like Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez and Daniel Jacobs, but one standing out: a defeat by UFC icon Anderson Silva in 2021. The Brazilian was 46 at the time and had not boxed since 2008, yet he earned a split decision over Chavez Jr after eight rounds. Notably, Silva would be dropped and outpointed by Paul 16 months later.
In the world of combat sports, maths does not function according to its usual rules, so none of these factors and statistics guarantee a victory either way on Saturday, when the Americans box at the Honda Center in Anaheim.
But they offer enough cause for concern, if you are among that sizeable group wishing for a Paul defeat. So does Chavez Jr's inactivity in recent years; his last bout, a points win against UFC alum Uriah Hall, took place 11 months ago – two-and-a-half years after his previous outing.
So, here we are again, with a Paul fight imminent and appearing a decided risk, when it might just be a finely calculated one. No, maths does not function normally in this world, but no one is better at crunching the numbers than Paul.