Jake Paul admits his time in the heavyweight division might be over, as he gained *too much* weight for his fight against Mike Tyson.
The YouTuber-turned-boxer Paul put on two stone (around 13 kg), reaching 227 lbs (approx. 103 kg), before controversially bringing Mike Tyson out of retirement in November.
The food enthusiast indulged in pasta, steak, and potatoes in an effort to pack on weight, but the added pounds made it difficult for him *even to run*.
Therefore, Paul, who defeated Tyson over eight shorter two-minute rounds, has spent the last six months shedding weight to reach the cruiserweight limit of 14 stone 4 lbs (approx. 91.6 kg).
He stated: “It was simply too much, my body wasn`t built for it, and even when I got into the ring, I felt too fat.”
“So cruiserweight is definitely the perfect weight for me.”
The lightest Paul, 28, has fought at was 183.6 lbs (approx. 83.3 kg) before his defeat to Tommy Fury in 2023, which remains his first and only loss to date.
Paul`s fight with Tyson generated significant controversy due to their 31-year age gap, but it proved commercially successful, drawing over 100 MILLION viewers on Netflix.
Seeking to capitalize on the streaming success, the American surprisingly entered talks to face Canelo Alvarez on May 3 in Las Vegas.
However, Canelo withdrew from that deal to instead sign a four-bout contract with Saudi boxing head Turki Alalshikh. In May, Canelo defeated William Scull in Riyadh to reclaim the undisputed super-middleweight titles, which he is set to defend against Terence Crawford in their super-fight on September 13.
Consequently, Paul shifted his focus to an exhibition bout against WBA lightweight champion Gervonta Davis.
But Davis is now slated for a rematch against Lamont Roach in August following their controversial draw in New York in March.
Ultimately, Paul arranged a fight with former middleweight world champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., moving back down to his natural and more comfortable weight.
Speaking ahead of the June 28 DAZN PPV event, he said: “I wanted the hardest and the biggest fights, which were first Canelo, then Gervonta, but those fell through.”
“And at any given time, we are negotiating or speaking with five to six fighters to see who is available and ready to fight and make a date happen.”
“And after Canelo and Gervonta, we were talking to multiple people, and Chavez was the one who stepped up, which made sense for me to stay active and get a fight in June.”
“So really, it`s just a long list, and I just need more time, but I will get to all these names when the stars align.”
