Jake Paul set to fight Gervonta Davis in exhibition bout on Netflix
Two of boxing's most popular fighters will square off on Nov. 14 in Atlanta despite enormous weight disparity
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Cruiserweight Jake Paul and WBA lightweight titlist Gervonta “Tank” Davis, separated by 65 pounds and also two of boxing’s biggest stars, will fight on Nov. 14 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions announced on Wednesday. The event will stream live to Netflix subscribers.
Whether it will be an exhibition or an official fight, the maximum weight, the number of rounds and if there will be any rules tweaks, were not announced. However, a source with direct knowledge of the particulars told Fight Freaks Unite it will be a scheduled 10-round exhibition with the result not counting on either fighter’s official record.
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Paul, who had also been connected to a possible fight with former two-time unified heavyweight titlist Anthony Joshua, and Davis had agreed to fight in May. Paul had been on the verge of a deal to fight Canelo Alvarez but at the last minute Alvarez instead accepted a four-fight deal with Saudi Arabia’s Turki Alalshikh.
Paul (12-1, 7 KOs), 28, of Puerto Rico, then turned to Davis and was ringside for his title defense against Lamont Roach Jr. on March 1 at Barclay Center in Brooklyn, New York. Davis escaped with a very controversial draw and the fight with Paul, which Fight Freaks Unite reported would have been an exhibition, was never announced.
Davis (30-0-1, 28 KOs), 30, a southpaw from Baltimore, instead invoked his contractual right to an immediate rematch with Roach, the WBA junior lightweight titleholder, who had moved up to challenge him. The rematch was penciled in for multiple summer dates but never officially announced, in part because Davis was arrested in June on a domestic violence charge that was dropped last week.
Now Davis has decided to face Paul instead of cleaning up the controversy of the fight with Roach next as he initially planned to do, opting for what will certainly be a bigger payday against Paul.
“Gervonta is an angry little elf who has been disrespecting my name for too long,” Paul said. “His nickname might be Tank, but I’m an FPV drone and I’m about to disable his ass. Yes, he is one of the top pound-for-pound boxers in the world, but my motto is anyone, anytime, any place, against all odds. And I like my odds. First, I am going to kill David, then I will go on to slaughter Goliath (Joshua), and you are all going watch me do it, breaking viewership records again. Atlanta. Friday, Nov. 14th. The worst night of Gervonta’s career, live only on Netflix.”
The bout, which was negotiated between MVP and Premier Boxing Champions, which works with Davis, will be the second for Paul on Netflix. In November, Paul bulked up to 227 pounds and easily won an eight-round decision (with two-minute rounds instead of the male standard three) against 58-year-old former undisputed heavyweight champion Mike Tyson, who ended a nearly 20-year retirement for the bout that drew 72,300 to AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
It was the first sports event to stream on Netflix and it was a monster with Netflix reporting that it became the most-streamed sports event ever with 108 million live viewers globally.
When the plans for a spring fight with Davis did not come to fruition, Paul faced long-faded Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. and won a lopsided decision on June 28 in Anaheim, California, in the main event of a DAZN PPV card.
Although most of Paul’s fights have been against MMA fighters coming into boxing or against inactive, non-contenders with name recognition — Tyson and Chavez — he has steadfastly said his ultimate goal is to win a cruiserweight world title. But he has also said if a non-traditional big event, such as the bout against Davis, was available he would also do it.
“Jake Paul and Tank Davis have redefined the professional combat sports landscape as the top fighters among Gen Z and Gen Alpha audiences,” MVP co-founder Nakisa Bidarian said. “Now they will collide to determine the true face of boxing’s next generation.
“When Jake called out Tank in August of 2021, everyone laughed and said he would get killed. Since then, Tank has called Jake a clown and easy work. Well four years later, here we are. No more call outs and no more name calling. Jake the disrupter versus Tank the destroyer, for the face of boxing crown.”
Davis has yet to comment on the fight and did not post anything about it on social media.
The event will be the fourth boxing card on Netflix, along with Paul-Tyson, the MVP-promoted all-female card headlined by the third Katie Taylor-Amanda Serrano fight on July 11 and undisputed super middleweight champion Alvarez’s defense against fellow four-division champion Terence Crawford that is scheduled for Sept. 13.
“This isn’t just a fight, it’s a spectacle that brings together two of the most electrifying figures in boxing today,” said Brandon Riegg, Netflix vice president for nonfiction series and sports. “We’re building on our momentum with live sports and giving our members exactly what they want: a massive, can’t-miss event with global appeal.”
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