YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul will face UFC legend Anderson Silva in an eight-round boxing match on Saturday, October 29 at the Gila River Arena in Phoenix, Arizona on Tuesday afternoon.
The fight will headline a Showtime pay-per-view with a catchweight of 187 pounds.
Paul (5-0, 4 KOs), who hasn’t fought since knocking out Tyron Woodley last December, was scheduled to face experienced pros Tommy Fury and Hasim Rahman Jr. before those bouts were canceled due to various issues. . Silva represents the most experienced fighter Paul has faced thus far, as he turned pro with a loss in 1998 before becoming one of the most dominant UFC champions in history.
Now 47, Silva has been back in the ring for the past year, besting the much more experienced pro Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. and knocking out former UFC champion Tito Ortiz in one round.
Paul, who is 22 years younger at 25, says it will be an honor to face the “most versatile fighter the world has ever seen.”
“Every pundits from MMA to boxing have said that Jake Paul will not fight Anderson Silva. They said that Jake Paul is afraid of Anderson Silva, and that Jake Paul would lose to Anderson Silva. Well, for all the non-believers out there: Jake Paul is fighting Anderson Silva,” Paul said in a statement.
The fight against Silva will be Paul’s fourth in a row against a former UFC fighter, after knocking out Ben Askren in 2021 and defeating Woodley in back-to-back fights. Silva will be the first opponent Paul has faced to come into the fight with a previous win on his record.
Paul had previously been scheduled to fight on August 6 at Madison Square Garden in New York, but the fight was canceled after original opponent Fury was denied entry to the United States and Rahman alerted organizers a week earlier. that he could not reach the contracted weight. .
Three of the fights scheduled for the card were moved to other events and the other fighters on the card were paid half their purses, the statement said.
