Jake Paul vs Gervonta Davis Won’t Happen, But What Will?
Following on from the recent legal issues involving Gervonta “Tank” Davis, the WBA lightweight world champion is out of his fight with YouTuber, Jake “The Problem Child” Paul. As of now, there is no replacement in the pipeline, which also means the planned date of November 14th for Paul’s latest showdown is no longer, with reports suggesting a bout in December or early 2026.
The bout between Davis and Paul was no doubt set to be an intriguing one. It was without question going to be the YouTuber’s biggest matchup in terms of viewing figures, given the popularity of his opponent and how he is one of the best pound-for-pound fighters on the planet.
Moreover, this also means it would have been Paul’s most difficult fight of his career. Davis has so far knocked out 28 of his opponents, winning a total of 30 times from 31 bouts, with the only failure to win coming in the form of a draw with Lamont Roach Jr.
What Could Have Happened Between Paul and Davis?
In reality, and according to the odds at Betway, we may have witnessed Paul’s second loss in boxing, although the loss would not have gone on his record, as this was set to be a catchweight exhibition bout due to the significant difference in size and weight between the two.
Davis, as mentioned, is unbeaten in his professional career with 31 fights so far, winning 30 of them and drawing the other. From these 30 victories on his unbeaten record, the WBA lightweight champion has finished the fight inside the distance in devastating fashion 28 times, taking TKO/KO victories over elite names like Ryan Garcia, Rolando Romero, Mario Barrios and Liam Walsh, to name just a few.
On the one hand, we could have seen Paul knocked down for the first time in front of boxing cameras, and perhaps even knocked clean out cold. Davis possesses freakish power for a man of his height and weight, and he is even considered ‘small’ for a lightweight champion.
Even if Paul survived, we surely would have seen him in deep waters and tested like never before. Indeed, Tommy Fury did defeat Paul two years ago, but only narrowly. Davis, however, could have outclassed, outworked and even put away the YouTuber inside the distance.
On the other hand to this argument, perhaps we could have seen Paul inflict the first bit of damage we have truly seen on Davis in his boxing career, given the dramatic difference in height and weight.
We expected Paul to head into this bout over 200 lbs, at least. In fact, he probably would have tried to weigh as heavily as possible, due to there being no limit in exhibition fights and knowing how much bigger he already was than Davis.
Moreover, the California State Athletic Commission reported that the 28-year-old YouTuber bulked up to 209.4 lbs in his win over Julio Chavez Jr. back in June. Paul would also win that fight via unanimous decision.
Davis, however, is considerably lighter and smaller in height and would have probably, on fight night, been at least 70 lbs lighter and eight inches smaller. In Davis’ most recent bout against Lamont Roach Jr., he weighed in at just 133 lbs. This is a 66.4 lbs difference, in comparison to Paul’s most recent fight.
With all this in mind, it’s a shame this fight fell through. However, boxing fans will not have to wait a lot to see big fights with Eubank Jr fighting Benn this weekend and Benavidez v Anthony Yarde in the beginning of December. Betway has already posted odds for both upcoming fights. And for fans considering where to place their wagers, Oddspedia offers information about the bonus available to new users in Canada, giving a clearer picture of how the sportsbook stacks up against its competitors.
Who Could Paul Face Next?
Paul’s opponents are always carefully chosen by him and his team. He’s either fighting non-boxers, such as Ben Askren or Nate Robinson, or beating up men way past their prime, like Mike Tyson or Anderson Silva.
If Paul is to fight in 2025 – which is rumoured to be the plan – the opponent will come in on very short notice. This also means they may not be ready for the battle with the YouTuber, in contrast to someone at the peak of their powers, like Davis.
In situations like this in the past, ex-UFC stars have often come in to fill the gap, such as when Mike Perry did so when Tyson postponed his bout with Paul in 2024. He has also fought former UFC names like Nate Diaz, Silva, Tyron Woodley (x2) and Askren, meaning the only bout in his 13-fight career against an actual active professional boxer was against Fury in 2023.
As of now, it seems as if Diaz is leading the way for what would be a rematch with Paul. The latter won the fight via unanimous decision in what was a fairly underwhelming performance from both men. Diaz was dropped in the fight, and ultimately lost 98–91, 98–91 and 97–92 on the scorecards.
Other names being billed include former UFC heavyweight champion, Junior Dos Santos, former pound-for-pound king, Andre Ward, and even former heavyweight champion, Anthony Joshua.
The latter indeed sounds like a long shot and quite frankly, ridiculous, so it’s fair to say that, once again, Paul is set to face a fighter past their prime or another non-boxer, should he fight at all before we see 2026.
Where Can I Watch Paul’s Next Fight and When is It?
As mentioned, the initial date of November 14th to fight Davis has been moved forward, but with no official date. It is still unclear whether or not Paul is willing to wait for Davis to conclude his legal proceedings or if he will find an opponent before the end of 2025.
Regardless, Paul has signed the deal with Netflix, just as he did when he fought Tyson back in 2024, meaning it will still be streamed on the world-leading streaming service.
Following the announcement of the canceled fight, Most Valuable Promotions CEO, Nakisa Bidarian, said: “…our plan still remains for Jake Paul to headline an event on Netflix in 2025. Details regarding a new date, location, Jake’s opponent, and additional bouts will be shared as soon as they are finalized.”
