Jake Paul will return to the boxing ring this spring, fighting another former world champion as he faces Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.
YouTube star Paul, whose profile has grown due to his boxing ventures in recent years, last fought in November, when he outpointed heavyweight legend Mike Tyson in a widely-criticised bout.
That match-up played out at Dallas’s AT&T Stadium in front of 72,000 fans, and it was viewed live by 65 million accounts on Netflix. However, the level of the boxing between 28-year-old Paul and 58-year-old Tyson was the subject of much derision.
Now, after failing to secure a fight with Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, Paul returns against another ex-world champion, facing Chavez Jr on 28 June, at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California.
The contest is scheduled for 10 three-minute rounds at 200lb, and it will stream live on DAZN pay-per-view.
Chavez Jr, 39, is a former WBC middleweight champion and the son of the legendary Julio Cesar Chavez.
Jr, who has six professional defeats to his name, last fought in July 2024, outpointing ex-UFC fighter Uriah Hall. In 2021, he was beaten on points by UFC legend Anderson Silva in an embarrassing result.
“Five years ago, I stepped into the ring for my pro debut after a single amateur fight,” Paul said on Friday (18 April), “and every fight since has been a step towards becoming world champion.
“I just defeated the baddest man on the planet, and now I’m going against a former champion who conman Canelo couldn’t finish.
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“Chavez Jr is Mexican, but I, ‘El Gallo De Dorado’, have the will and heart of the great Mexican fighters. On Saturday 28 June, live on DAZN pay-per-view, I will knock out Julio and make Chavez Sr proud in ways Jr never has.”
Meanwhile, Chavez Jr said: “First of all, I will show what I can do now that everything is in the right place in my life – mentally and physically.
“I feel rejuvenated and 10 years younger. Second, I want to thank MVP [Most Valuable Promotions, Paul’s company] for taking the risk of fighting me.
“Unfortunately for their ‘Problem Child’, they’re going to have a big problem this June, one they won’t know how to resolve. Hopefully when I beat him, people won’t underestimate this win.”
Mexico’s Chavez Jr will aim to become the second boxer to beat Paul. The American’s sole defeat in the ring came in 2023, when he was beaten on points by Tommy Fury, half-brother of former heavyweight champion Tyson Fury.
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