The boxing world just got rocked. Fresh off the news that legendary boxer Canelo Alvarez won’t fight Terence Crawford in what was a highly anticipated bout expected for September, the 34-year-old native of Guadalajara, Mexico and Jake Paul are finalizing a deal for a May 3 clash, per ESPN’s Mike Coppinger.
Even though it will not be yet official, all indications are that Paul and Alvarez will collide in a cruiserweight showdown in Las Vegas, Nevada’s T-Mobile Arena. The previous will get into the ring against a top-flight boxer, in the end, while the latter can have to pack on some kilos with a view to jump up a weight class.
Considering the excitement there was surrounding Paul’s November match with Mike Tyson, these two men and Netflix should rake in substantial revenue for this spring clash. But simply because many fans will watch the fight, doesn’t mean they will likely be pleased about it.
People rushed to social media to voice their strong opinions on this boxing bombshell.
Fans react to Paul-Alvarez stunner
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“It will test Paul,” @WageMeta commented on X, formerly twitter. “This shouldn’t occur, how can Jake Paul fight Canelo and he’s never boxed a ranked boxer in his class,” @JBoogie2494 said. “Boxing fans will likely be in shambles when Jake Paul ends him,” @HomelanderMMA predicted. “Finally fighting someone that isn’t retired,” @vicberggren remarked. “Canelo isn’t any joke, Jake is gonna discover.”
Others focused on the Alvarez side of things, expressing disappointment that he’s choosing the flashier bout quite than those diehard fans wish to see. “Not even mad at Jake Paul but Canelo, however the way you going to duck {David} Benavidez and Crawford smh,” @jasoneg33 posted. “Canelo turning down fighting “Bud” for Jake Paul is truthfully a nasty search for boxing… imagine Jon Jones announced he’s fighting Jake in MMA over fighting Tom Aspinall,” @KyleAnthonyUFC said. “There can be riots.”
Paul, a YouTuber-turned-boxer, is amongst essentially the most polarizing figures in the game. He has an 11-1 record, together with his lone defeat coming against Tommy Fury, brother of all-time great heavyweight Tyson Fury, in February of 2023. Most of his triumphs have come against mixed martial artists or boxers past their prime. Alvarez carries numerous mileage into this fight (62-2-2), but he presents a mammoth challenge for “The Problem Child.”
There’s loads of time to investigate the competitors, but beyond the motion itself, this will likely be a grand spectacle. Paul called his shot three years ago, and now it looks as if he can have the chance to authenticate it.
