Boxing
Jake Paul ‘ready to die’ to upset Anthony Joshua
Jake Paul says he’s willing to go where most fighters won’t.
At the first faceoff in Miami, the size gap was glaring with the 6-foot-6 Anthony Joshua towering over the 6-foot-1 Paul, but the message from the smaller man was louder.
“I just have to avoid that one shot for eight rounds, and I believe that I can do that,” Paul said. “I want him to cut me up. I want him to break my face, but guess what? He’s going to have to kill me to stop me, and I’m ready to die. Seriously. Ready to die in the ring to win this fight.”
Joshua and Paul meet Dec. 19 at the Kaseya Center in Miami in an eight-round heavyweight bout streamed by Netflix.
Paul is leaning on belief and a game plan built on speed, angles and discipline. He called Joshua one of the best heavyweights ever.
“I like to challenge myself. I like to take on the biggest, the best. I said anyone, anytime, any place,” Paul said. “No one ever thought that this would be possible, that we would be here when I first started boxing, and no one thinks I’m going to win.”
For his part, Joshua embraced the spectacle and the risk.
“It’s massive. It’s colossal. It’s making big news. We’re bringing marketability together with ability,” Joshua said. “If I’m going to be honest, I’m going to break his face, I’m going to break his body up, I’m going to stomp all over him.”
The rules add a wrinkle. Joshua must weigh no more than 245 pounds at the official weigh-in. He’s hovered at 250 pounds or more in recent outings. Paul, who was slimming down for a canceled Gervonta Davis date, expects to come in between 215 and 225 after bulking back up.
There’s history on both sides. Joshua (28-4, 25 KOs) remains one of the heavyweight division’s most destructive punchers. Paul (12-1, 7 KOs) has stacked names, from Tyron Woodley to Anderson Silva to a decision over 59-year-old Mike Tyson, and he has built a team he trusts.
“People say, ‘I respect Jake Paul for getting in there,’” Paul said. “No. Respect me because I’m about to win.”
-Reuters
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Oleksandr Usyk will put his WBC heavyweight title belt on the line against Dutch kickboxer Rico Verhoeven on May 23 at Egypt’s Pyramids of Giza, Ring Magazine announced on Friday.
The Ukrainian three-times undisputed champion holds the IBF, WBA and WBC titles after vacating the WBO belt.
The 39-year-old has not boxed since beating Britain’s Daniel Dubois at London’s Wembley Stadium last July.
“I respect his (Verhoeven’s) journey – he’s truly the ‘King of Kickboxing’. But this is boxing – a different game, with its own rules and its own kings,” said Usyk, who has a 24-0 record.
“I’m ready and looking forward to meeting him in the ring. It’s going to be a unique experience for both of us, and I know the fans are excited too. A big night is coming.”
The ‘Glory in Giza’ fight will be streamed live on DAZN.
“I spent 12 years as the undisputed heavyweight kickboxing champion and accomplished everything I set out to accomplish,” Verhoeven, 36, told The Ring.
“But staying at the top for that long didn’t take away from the hunger; it strengthened it. Usyk is the undisputed champion in boxing. That’s the kind of challenge that motivated me. Undisputed versus undisputed.”
Verhoeven has sparred in the past with former champion Tyson Fury and had one professional bout in 2014, which he won by a knockout.
-Reuters
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Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao will face off in a professional rematch at the Sphere in Las Vegas in September, with the bout streaming globally on Netflix, the fighters and promoters announced on Monday.
The fight marks Mayweather’s return from retirement and will be the first professional boxing match held at the Sphere.
Mayweather, who holds a perfect 50-0 record with 27 knockouts, defeated Pacquiao in their 2015 encounter dubbed the “Fight of the Century.”
That bout generated a record 4.6 million pay-per-view buys and a $72 million live gate at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.
“I already fought and beat Manny once. This time will be the same result,” Mayweather said in a statement.
Pacquiao, whose record stands at 62-8-3 with 39 knockouts, expressed confidence he would hand Mayweather his first professional loss.
“I want Floyd to live with the one loss on his professional record and always remember who gave it to him,” the Filipino fighter said.
The rematch will stream to Netflix’s more than 325 million subscribers worldwide, continuing the platform’s push into live boxing.
The streaming platform has recently broadcast several high-profile fights, including Jake Paul versus Mike Tyson, which the company said drew 108 million live global viewers
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Former multi-weight world boxing champion Floyd Mayweather will come out of retirement this year for his first official fight in nearly a decade, his new promotion CSI Sports/Fight Sports said on Friday, though his opponent has yet to be decided.
Before his official return, Mayweather is set for an exhibition bout with fellow boxing great Mike Tyson, with the date and venue still to be announced.
“I still have what it takes to set more records in the sport of boxing – from my upcoming Mike Tyson event to my next professional fight afterwards – no one will generate a bigger gate, have a larger global broadcast audience and generate more money with each event – than my events,” Mayweather, 48, said in a statement on his new promotion’s website.
It will mark the American’s fourth comeback from retirement, following previous exits in 2007, 2015 and 2017 — the last after beating Conor McGregor to extend his record to 50-0. He has, however, fought several exhibitions since.
Across a three-decade career, Mayweather defeated many of his era’s top fighters and headlined the three highest‑grossing bouts in history, against Manny Pacquiao, McGregor and Canelo Alvarez.
-Reuters
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