Jake Paul won't face Mike Tyson on July 20, but he will still box on that date. The aspiring boxer will meet ex-UFC fighter and current BKFC middleweight champion "Platinum" Mike Perry on that date at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Fla., in a cruiserweight boxing match that will be streamed on DAZN Pay-Per-View.
After Paul's bout with Tyson, the former undisputed heavyweight champion, was moved to Nov. 15 to allow Tyson sufficient time to recover from an ulcer, Paul moved quickly to stay on the July 20 date by facing Perry.
Now, it continues a trend of Paul taking on smaller fighters, as Perry currently fights in the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship at 185 pounds and fought most of his UFC career at 170. He'll move up to 200 pounds to face Paul in boxing's cruiserweight division. In his only boxing match, on March 28, 2015, Perry weighed 1673/4 when he was knocked out in the fourth round by Kenneth McNeil.
Perry has become a massive star in the BKFC and is that organization's most popular fighter. Paul, though, has more experience in boxing and is significantly bigger. Paul, who is 9-1 with 6 KOs as a boxer, will also have a three-inch height advantage and a five-inch edge in reach.
“Jake Paul claims he fears no man, but on Saturday, July 20, the world will see the truth: He just made the worst mistake of his life in trying to get through me before Iron Mike,” Perry said. “I’m going to make it look easy ... and I’m going to teach Jake Paul the most he’s ever learned about fighting."
Paul has weighed 1991/2 and 1993/4 in his last two boxing matches, knockouts of Andre August and Ryan Bourland. In his 11th fight, Paul will fight an opponent with one or zero pro boxing matches for the seventh time.
The fight figures to be a big attraction on PPV as both men are well known, have loyal followings and are good trash talkers.
“When Paul vs. Tyson was rescheduled, I knew immediately that I wanted to still fight on Saturday, July 20," Paul said. "Now, as I prepare for my fight against Iron Mike, there’s no better opponent for me than Mike Perry. He’s a proven knockout artist who has shown to be a maniac in and out of the ring. This is the perfect experience for me to gain in advance of facing Mike Tyson. But getting that experience comes with risk. Those who know me know I’m a risk taker and while ‘Platinum’ Perry might try to end me, I’m 'Titanium' Jake Paul and I fear no man. I’m going to get the W and give everyone a preview of what I’m bringing to the ring against Mike Tyson. Tune in on DAZN PPV as I return to Tampa and send ‘Platinum’ Perry the Platypus back to bare knuckle for good.”
Amanda Serrano, who will rematch Katie Taylor on Nov. 15, will face Stevie Morgan in the co-feature.