Jake Paul’s next fight will be an exhibition against world lightweight champion Gervonta Davis, in a major surprise.
YouTuber-turned-boxer Paul had been in talks over an ambitious super-fight with former heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua, but he will instead face fellow American “Tank” Davis on Friday 14 November.
The bout is set to take place at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia with the exhibition element likely counteracting the vast weight disparity between Paul, 28, and Davis, 30.
The unbeaten Davis is the reigning WBA lightweight champion, generally fighting inside a limit of 135lb, though for his last fight – a controversial draw with Lamont Roach Jr in March – he tipped the scales at 133.8lb.
Meanwhile, Paul’s last bout was a decision win over former world champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr at cruiserweight in June, with Paul weighing in at 199.4lb. However, Paul has also boxed at heavyweight before.
The disparity between Paul and Davis’s respective last weights is 65.6lb, while the influencer stands at 6ft 1in compared to Davis’s 5ft 5in.
Paul’s talks over a fight with Joshua, 35, reportedly collapsed over network-related issues. Joshua generally fights on DAZN, while Paul has boxed on both DAZN and Netflix in recent months. His bout with Chavez Jr streamed on DAZN, while his previous outing – a highly controversial fight with heavyweight legend Mike Tyson, 59, whom Paul outpointed – streamed on Netflix. Paul vs Davis is due to air on Netflix, too.
A larger-than-usual glove size may well be used for Paul vs Davis, the latter of whom is widely regarded as one of boxing’s hardest punchers, with his 30-0 professional record including 28 knockouts.
Paul took to social media to announce the fight, posting in X: “Gervonta who has been disrespecting my name for too long. HIs nickname might be Tank, but I’m an FPV drone and I’m about to disable tiny boy.
“Yes, he’s 1 of the top pound-for-pound boxers in the world, but my motto is anyone, anytime, anyplace, against all odds. And I like my odds. First, I am going to kill David, then I will go on to slaughter Goliath.”
Davis had been in talks over a rematch with Roach Jr but will instead face Paul, whose pro record stands at 12-1 (7 KOs). Paul’s sole loss came at the hands of Tommy Fury – half-brother of heavyweight star Tyson Fury – in 2023. He holds wins over numerous high-profile mixed martial artists and lesser-known boxers.
Meanwhile, Davis’s standout win was a 2022 stoppage of Ryan Garcia, and he has also beaten the likes of Rolly Romero, Mario Barrios, Isaac Cruz and Leo Santa Cruz.
Roach Jr reacted to the news by tweeting, “Told ya lol [laugh out loud],” adding several duck emojis, suggesting that Davis was avoiding their rematch.
