Jake Paul schedules fight with pro boxer Tommy Fury, the brother of WBC heavyweight champion, Tyson Fury; Paul vs Fury will take place on February 26 in Saudi Arabia; Badou Jack will challenge Ilunga Makabu for the WBC cruiserweight world title on the undercard
Friday 27 January 2023 13:54, UK
Jake Paul will fight Tommy Fury on February 26 in Saudi Arabia.
Paul rose to fame on social media but has moved into boxing and amassed a 6-0 professional record, with four of those victories coming by stoppage.
Tommy Fury is the brother of WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury. Previous attempts to make the contest with Paul have collapsed but now their fight has been announced for next month in Riyadh.
Fury is an unbeaten pro who has won eight consecutive bouts since making his debut in 2018, though those contests have largely come against journeymen.
He will be the first opponent with a boxing background that Paul has taken on. In his pro bouts so far the YouTube star has only beaten another social media personality in AnEson Gib, a former basketball player in Nate Robinson and MMA fighters who were switching to boxing.
But Paul's most recent fight was more respectable. He dropped and outpointed Anderson Silva, the 47-year-old UFC legend who had also beaten Julio Cesar Chavez Jr in a boxing match.
"The moment of truth has finally arrived," Paul said. "On February 26, I will get in the ring with a 'real boxer,' an 8-0 fighter from a storied fighting family and show the world the truth about who Jake Paul, the boxer, really is."
Tommy Fury however warned: "Jake Paul's boxing career ends on February 26 and I can finally move on with mine.
"Every time I go out right now, everybody asks me about the Jake Paul fight. After this fight is done, everybody will be asking me how it felt to knock Jake Paul out.
"The world is about to see what happens when a proper boxer faces a YouTuber."
Also on the bill in the Middle East, 39-year-old Badou Jack, who has previously held titles at super-middle and light-heavyweight, will challenge Ilunga Makabu for the WBC cruiserweight world championship.
