Jake and Logan Paul's journey from internet sensations to professional boxers has been one that's captivated the world, and it's thanks in large part to their antics. This is especially true for Jake Paul, whose high-profile antics have seemingly made him a massive draw with audiences, some of whom hope his next opponent will be the one to knock him out. That hasn't happened yet, and it looks like Paul's claim to be a legitimate boxer just got a boost from a television deal that will see him join forces with Showtime.
Jake Paul, whose last fight against Ben Askren happened on the budding PPV service Triller, has now signed a multi-fight deal to box for Showtime Boxing. Deadline confirmed the deal, which was first mentioned by Paul's advisor Nakisa Bidarian to ESPN on Wednesday. Not much is known about who Jake Paul's next opponent will be, though advanced negotiations are reportedly already in place both with Paul's camp and Showtime with an opponent.
As previously alluded to, Jake Paul being a part of a Showtime boxing deal is more support to his claim to being a bona fide professional boxer. The channel has hosted some of the must-see boxing events of the past decades and will host Jake's older brother Logan Paul's boxing bout with legend Floyd Mayweather on Sunday, June 6. Jake Paul was banned from the event after he grabbed Mayweather's hat during a press conference promoting the fight.
Rumors spread in recent days that Jake Paul would leave Triller, his former home for fights, and they came mainly from Triller's Ryan Kavanaugh. In a slew of posts that alleged UFC's Dana White blocked a super fight Triller planned with Oscar De La Hoya and Georges St-Pierre, Kavanaugh accused White of privately courting Paul for a deal with the UFC. Not long after, it was announced that Paul will be exclusive to Showtime Boxing, so perhaps Kavanaugh was mistaken in who was scouting the 24-year-old internet superstar.
With Showtime Boxing now the home for Jake Paul, it will be interesting to see if he'll get a challenging competitor that critics have claimed he hasn't seen yet. Paul himself has said he wants to challenge himself, but to this point, has taken fights that have positioned him as the favorite to win in the matchup. As mentioned, Showtime Boxing has had a history of working with some of boxing's best. It will be interesting to see how or if Paul's quality of opponents may change under this new deal.
Jake Paul and his brother Logan have had an undeniable impact on boxing lately, with Jake's latest fight on Triller allegedly generating 1.5 million buy-ins and around $75 million. Regardless of their accolades in the sport of boxing, it's clear why any organization would want to sign the brothers for an exclusive deal and hopefully make much more money in the long run by doing so.
Jake Paul's next fight has not been announced, but audiences will be able to see Logan Paul take on Floyd Mayweather on Showtime Sunday, June 6. For more Jake, check out the time he trolled a UFC coach and said some pretty off the wall things.
