Photo: Courtesy of HBO
Jake Paul is Not Boxing Anyone This Weekend
Jake Paul will not be boxing on August 6
Jake Paul will not be boxing on August 6 as originally planned.
It was a rough weekend for Jake Paul as he had to deal with losing his scheduled date to compete against Hasim Rahman Jr. The YouTuber turned prizefighter has been going all in on combat sports since he has won 5-0 as a professional boxer. He likes doing it and wanted to continue doing it at one of the most sacred stages for boxing, Madison Square Garden in New York City.
However, Paul seems to see the difference between getting fights done with competitors from other sports and those already established in boxing. It is hard not to sympathize with Paul because his detractors have been asking to see him face an actual boxer over former MMA fighters and basketball players. Paul was trying to answer them by facing Tommy Fury but Fury was unable to get to New York. So, Rahman Jr was set to replace Fury as Paul’s next true boxing opponent, then that fight gets scrapped by the New York State Athletic Commission (NYSAC) according to a press release from “Most Valuable Promotions.”
In it, the reason seems to have stemmed from Rahman Jr’s camp and an issue with him making weight for the event which was supposed to happen this coming Saturday. The contracted weight for them to compete was 200 pounds and Rahman Jr as of Friday, July 29 was weighing 215 pounds. So, since signing the agreement, Rahman Jr had only lost one pound. The press release said that NYSAC requires weekly weight checks and based on Rahman Jr’s lack of showing any proof of coming to cut weight properly, the fight was off and they had to cancel the event and issue refunds.
Paul has been adamant about not only taking boxing seriously but promoting the sport the way he seems to have promoted himself so that they both grow together, this news hit Paul hard in both aspects. He took to social media to vent his frustrations and apologize to the boxers on the undercard and fans looking to attend the event.
Yet again my opponents has pulled out of the fight… (1/2) pic.twitter.com/7ADOku3glx
— Jake Paul (@jakepaul) July 31, 2022
In his post, Paul says he was “devastated” by the news and called both Fury and Rahman Jr’s teams “so unprofessional to work with.”
It’s hard to argue and not sympathize with Paul.
Even Dana White, when baited by a reporter at the UFC 277 post-fight press conference seemed to show some sympathy in his way by saying, “I’m not going to sit up here and be happy or gloat that their fight fell out. I mean both those guys I’m sure put in a lot of hard work and a lot of training to get ready for this fight, spent money to get ready for this fight.”
He did add,” But I will say this. Just because you were an accountant here, doesn’t mean you know what goes on here. It doesn’t mean you can run a fight promotion company. I think Jake Paul probably needs to get some other people around him if he’s going to stay in this sport.”
The shot was at ex-UFC employee Nakisa Bidarian but White probably has a point.
