Category: Boxing

Video: KSI power slaps Dillon Danis with pancake at Misfits Boxing press conference

What did KSI’s five fingers say to Dillon Danis’ face? “SLAP!”

What did [autotag]KSI[/autotag]’s five fingers say to [autotag]Dillon Danis[/autotag]’ face? “SLAP!”

In what should come as a surprise to absolutely no one, KSI slapped Dillon Danis silly – with a pancake on Shrove Tuesday, otherwise known as Pancake Day, in the U.K. – during their first faceoff Thursday in London. The incident happened following a tense press conference to promote their Misfits Boxing match taking place March 29 in Manchester.

To the surprise of live-stream hosts Olivia Buzaglo and Dan Hardy, KSI and Danis were allowed to get up close with each other. At first, all was quiet as they exchanged words with each other quietly – until KSI pulled a page out of Dana White’s Power Slap and delivered a loud shot, causing security to immediately jump in and separate them.

You can watch the chaotic moment in the video above.

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Gervonta Davis-Lamont Roach non-call complicated by ‘technical issue,’ officials say

The New York State Athletic Commission released a statement addressing the controversial non-call in Gervonta Davis vs. Lamont Roach.

The controversial non-call when [autotag]Gervonta Davis[/autotag] took a knee during his fight against Lamont Roach Jr. Saturday is under review by the New York State Athletic Commission (NYSAC), the NYSAC said in a statement issued Monday.

“A technical issue” may have prevented the commission from acting during the fight at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, according to the statement.

The bout ended in a majority draw, and the critical moment could have swung the outcome in Roach’s favor.

That incident occurred in the ninth round when Davis dropped to a knee and headed back to his corner. Referee Steve Willis started a mandatory 10-count before allowing Davis to resume fighting without penalty — after Davis got his eyes wiped with a towel.

Davis later said he took a knee and headed to the corner because he had grease in his eye, the result of getting his hair done two days before the fight.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – MARCH 01: Gervonta Davis is warned by referee Steve Willis for a low blow to Lamont Roach Jr. during their bout for Davis’ WBA lightweight title at Barclays Center on March 01, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)

Ruling it a knockdown would have led to a point deduction for Davis and presumably changed the outcome of the fight.

“During the round in question, following the commission’s request for the replay video, there was a technical issue preventing the commission from receiving it within the allotted time for review,” the statement read. “Therefore, the referee’s in-ring decision was relied upon and the fight continued. The commission is dedicated to preserving the integrity of combative sports and is committed to working with all promotions and production teams on behalf of the athletes, officials and fans to ensure technical issues do not occur in the future that prevent delivery of ringside instant replay feeds to the commission’s officials when needed.”

The judges scored the 12-round fight 115-113 (in favor of Davis), 114-114, 114-114.

Davis (30-1-1, 28 KOs) was a heavy favorite entering the fight against Roach (25-1-2, 10 KOs).

Canelo Alvarez books undisputed title fight vs. William Scull after

The first fight of Canelo Alvarez’s new Riyadh Season deal is set.

The first fight of [autotag]Canelo Alvarez[/autotag]’s new Riyadh Season deal has been booked.

On Saturday, Turki Alalshikh announced that Alvarez – the Ring, WBO, WBA and WBC super middleweight champion – will take on undefeated IBF champ [autotag]William Scull[/autotag] on May 3 (May 4 locally) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

A victory by Alvarez could make his superfight with Terence Crawford, expected for September 13 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, even bigger.

Alvarez’s booking with Scull comes on the heels of him signing a new four-fight contract with Riyadh Season, which was the reason for Alvarez pulling out of a planned fight booking with Jake Paul at the 11th hour.

Alvarez, 34, most recently dominated Edgar Berlanga by unanimous decision to retain his titles last September. He’s on a five-fight winning streak since losing to Dmitry Bivol in May 2022.

Scull, 32, fought twice in 2024, winning unanimous decisions against Sean Hemphill and Vladimir Shishkin

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Jake Paul rips ‘money-hungry squirrel’ Canelo Alvarez for Riyadh Season deal: ‘We had a signed contract’

Jake Paul responded to Canelo Alvarez’s claim that he doesn’t fight Youtubers by showing a signed contract and fight poster.

The [autotag]Canelo Alvarez[/autotag] and [autotag]Jake Paul[/autotag] saga continues to heat up.

Alvarez and Paul were reportedly in the late stages of planning a boxing fight to take place May 3 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. However, Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority chairman Turki Alalshikh got a hold of Alvarez, landing a four-fight deal with the boxing superstar.

The late shift sparked backlash from Paul and his Most Valuable Promotions team, claiming Alvarez ducked the fight. Paul labeled him an “owned slave.”

Alvarez sent a video message to his fans, telling them to ignore Paul.

“Hey guys, don’t pay attention at anything from this f*cking Youtuber,” Alvarez said in a video posted to social media by Ring Magazine. “I just fight real fighters. No f*cking around with Canelo. Come on, let’s go.”

Moments after, Paul posted a video reply of his own, addressing the entire situation surrounding the proposed fight while ripping Alvarez’s business decisions and questioning his loyalty. In the video, Paul included photos of a signed contract and a fight poster that was to be released next week along with an official announcement.

“Oh, Canelo, you puta. Time to expose him,” Paul said in a video posted to Instagram. “So, we had a signed contract to fight. Here, you can see Canelo’s signature and my signature to the right. Claiming he’s not fighting Youtubers? Bullsh*t. Look at the poster. We were announcing Tuesday, Feb. 11. Claiming he fights real fighters, but he fighting Crawford, a 135-pound fighter, and running from a real fighter like David Benavidez, you b*tch.

“The truth is, you can be bought. You’re a money-hungry squirrel chasing your next nut. The truth is, the sportswashing shady characters are paying you hundreds of millions of dollars to stop our fight from happening because they couldn’t fathom the fact that they can’t create a bigger fight than me and you. Al Haymon has made you hundreds of millions of dollars, and you turned your back on him for this check. Disloyal. And you were begging to do this fight on pay-per-view, but I have loyalty. Loyalty to Netflix, doing the biggest numbers. You call me a Youtuber, but you’ve never had a boxing match as big as mine.”

Paul continued:

“Remember you told my team that your daughter came home and asked if you were fighting Jake Paul? She was all excited. You said that was the first time your daughter’s ever asked you about a fight. You’re screwing over all your Mexican fans by doing your fights in Saudi. It just shows what type of person you are. And I promise you one thing Canelo: any fight that you do this year, mine will be bigger. So, go f*ck off to your boss, you Ring Magazine employee. You pink and orange b*tch. And oh, fix that herpe on your lip you dirty puta.”

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DFy4egZR2xG/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

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Jake Paul: ‘Owned slave’ Canelo Alvarez ducked Cinco de Mayo fight in Vegas for Riyadh Season deal

The fallout from Thursday’s major, and apparently final, twist on a short boxing roller coaster ride likely only is just beginning.

The fallout from Thursday’s 11th-hour major, and apparently final, twist on a short boxing roller coaster ride likely only is just beginning.

Former YouTuber [autotag]Jake Paul[/autotag], who for the past few years has been arguably the biggest name in boxing, reportedly was about to announce a blockbuster fight on Netflix against [autotag]Canelo Alvarez[/autotag] – until a deal was announced between Alvarez and Riyadh Season in Saudi Arabia.

Paul on Friday said Alvarez ducked a fight with him and insinuated that he acted only for money and ignored other variables. Those variables, Paul’s MVP Promotions said in a news release, would have included a fight vs. Paul for Alvarez on Cinco de Mayo weekend in Las Vegas.

MVP’s statement also suggested some reporting of Paul and Alvarez news has been less than forthcoming in terms of journalistic credibility.

Turki Alalshikh, chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority, said Alvarez’s deal is for four fights. Alvarez, 34, is the current WBC and WBO super middleweight champion at 168 pounds. In his most recent appearance this past September, Alvarez dominated Edgar Berlanga by unanimous decision to retain his titles.

Alvarez is expected to box in Saudi Arabia in May in the first fight on the deal, then fight super welterweight champion Terence Crawford in September at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.

“Breaking news: Canelo Alvarez ducked me, Jake Paul, and is now an owned slave with no regard for the pride of the Mexican people who support him on US soil,” Paul posted on social media. “It’s not surprising when his whole career he has done nothing for the sport of boxing outside the ring.

“I’m the new face of boxing. You cannot have the biggest fight of 2025 without my name involved. When all of your events tank and lose money you will all realize who the king of the sport is. 28 years old. Biggest fight in boxing history. My own boss. Not owned. 5 years in. All of you felines want to see me fail, but God has other plans. It’s the era of good. The era of the elephant. It’s the era of MVP. @mostvaluablepromotions”

https://www.instagram.com/p/DFxvOSmRmQ9/?igsh=c243aGx4bnJuaXE5

MVP’s full statement on the Alvarez news:

“MVP was deep in negotiations for a blockbuster fight between Jake Paul and Canelo Alvarez on Cinco de Mayo weekend in Las Vegas, a massive event for the Mexican, Puerto Rican and American fans, and it’s disappointing to see how the situation unfolded. MVP operates with integrity, transparency, and respect for the sport, its athletes and the fans. Unfortunately, not everyone in the boxing world shares those values.

“This situation is a reminder not to believe everything you read, especially when the current media environment is often controlled by those with hidden agendas, including promoters who have reporters on their payroll. We remain in active discussions with multiple high-profile opponents and are committed to delivering the biggest fights, the most exciting events, and to working with partners who share our values and our commitment to boxing and its fighters.

“Jake Paul isn’t going anywhere, and neither is MVP. We’ll continue to disrupt boxing, on our terms.”

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Canelo Alvarez signs four-fight deal with Riyadh Season, nixing Jake Paul bout

Turki Alalshikh has stolen Canelo Alvarez out of the hands of a Jake Paul fight in the form of a four-fight deal with Riyadh Season.

Turki Alalshikh has gotten [autotag]Canelo Alvarez[/autotag] on board.

Late Thursday, a report from ESPN emerged claiming Alvarez and [autotag]Jake Paul[/autotag] were finalizing a deal to box May 3 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas in a cruiserweight bout expected to stream on Netflix.

However, in an 11th-hour swerve, Alalshikh, chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority, announced Alvarez has instead signed a four-fight deal with Riyadh Season. The deal is expected to have Alvarez box in Saudi Arabia in May, then take on super welterweight champion Terence Crawford in September at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.

Alalshikh hinted at Alvarez vs. Crawford happening in September by calling it “the biggest fight in the history of boxing.”

Alvarez, 34, is the current WBC and WBO super middleweight champion at 168 pounds. In his most recent appearance this past September, Alvarez dominated Edgar Berlanga by unanimous decision to retain his titles.

Crawford never has weighed in at more than 153 pounds, which came in his most recent outing, a unanimous decision win over Israil Madrimov to become a four-weight world champion.

Paul has yet to comment on the showdown with Alvarez failing to come to fruition after subsequent reports from ESPN indicated it was on the “1-yard line” from being done.

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Report: Canelo Alvarez, Jake Paul finalizing deal for boxing fight in Las Vegas

According to a report, Jake Paul is in the final stages of securing a fight against boxing’s biggest star, Canelo Alvarez.

(This story has been updated to a new version with the latest Canelo Alvarez fight news.)

[autotag]Jake Paul[/autotag] may have pulled off the impossible to land a fight against [autotag]Canelo Alvarez[/autotag].

As many times as the Youtuber-turned-boxer has called out one of the best boxers on the planet, Paul’s dream matchup has apparently become a reality. Throughout his pro boxing journey, many have called for Paul to fight a big name boxer in their prime. Well, it doesn’t get any bigger than Alvarez.

According to a report from ESPN’s Mike Coppinger, Paul and Alvarez are finalizing a deal to box on May 3, 2025, at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The fight will take place at the cruiserweight limit of 200 pounds. The spectacle is expected to broadcast live on Netflix.

Alvarez, 34, is the current WBC and WBO super middleweight champion at 168 pounds. In his last appearance in September, Alvarez dominated Edgar Berlanga by unanimous decision to retain his titles.

Alvarez was recently linked to a massive blockbuster fight against super welterweight champion and arguably boxing’s pound-for-pound best, Terence Crawford. Despite the name value, it was a curious matchup due to the size difference as Crawford has never weighed in at more than 153 pounds.

However, Ring Magazine reported Wednesday the fight planned for September in Las Vegas was off. Now Alvarez is facing a showdown with an even more unlikely opponent.

Paul, 28, is coming off a huge event against 58-year-old boxing legend Mike Tyson at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. The fight was the first live sporting event on Netflix, and sold just shy of 60,000 tickets, generating $18.1 million. Paul’s unanimous decision victory was his fifth straight win.

Paul has been calling out Alvarez for years, and finally has the boxing star’s attention.

Prior to fighting Tyson, Paul said he he would make Canelo his next target.

“Canelo is on his way out,” Paul said on the “TimboSugarShow podcast.” “He’s going to want a payday, and I want to show the world that all the sh*t I’ve been talking about beating Canelo is actually true.”

During the post-fight press conference following the Tyson fight, Nakisa Bidarian, co-founder of Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions spoke about the possiblity of a fight with Alvarez when asked about a potential fight against former UFC champion Conor McGregor.

“We believe Canelo would do a cruiserweight fight,” Bidarian said. “There’s no way Conor does a cruiserweight fight with Jake Paul.”

The Youtuber began his pro boxing career in 2020, and has rapidly become one of boxing’s biggest draws, despite fighting against mediocre boxing competition. Paul generated focus by taking on former NBA player Nate Robinson, and then turned his attention to taking out former MMA champions such as Ben Askren, Tyron Woodley and Anderson Silva. The lone loss on his professional record came by split decision against Tommy Fury, brother of retired former heavyweight champion Tyson Fury.

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KSI vs. Dillon Danis set for Misfits Boxing match

Misfits Boxing is giving it another go as KSI and Dillon Danis will (allegedly) square off this spring.

[autotag]KSI[/autotag] and [autotag]Dillon Danis[/autotag] will square off in the ring this spring.

Misfits Boxing officially announced the matchup will take place March 29 at AO Arena in Manchester, England. The event titled “Unfinished Business” will stream on DAZN pay-per-view. It will be contested at 185 pounds.

It’s unclear how many rounds the bout is scheduled for, what weight it will take place at, or if the match is professional or exhibition.

KSI (4-1) and Danis (0-1) were initially supposed to fight in January 2023 in a six-round exhibition bout at 178 pounds. However, Danis withdrew from the bout 10 days prior and was replaced by gaming streamer FaZe Temperrr (Thomas Oliveira).

Misfits Boxing promoter Mams Taylor, who also manages KSI, said Danis was “underprepared” for the bout hence the pullout.

Danis has built a reputation for inactivity and withdrawals. Since his final Bellator MMA fight in June 2019, Danis has competed once in non-grappling contests. That appearance was an October 2023 exhibition boxing match against Logan Paul. Danis was disqualified in Round 6 for unsportsmanlike conduct.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DFqQMltOiGk/

Similar to Jake Paul in America, KSI has become a massive draw for influencer boxing in the United Kingdom. He’s competed in six exhibition boxing matches against a handful of influencers, as well as undefeated boxer Joe Fournier and journeyman Luis Alcaraz Pineda.

KSI has also competed twice professionally. He beat Logan Paul by split decision in his pro debut in 2019, then lost to Tommy Fury in October 2023.

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Report: Canelo Alvarez, Terence Crawford reach agreement on September superfight

The outcome of Canelo Alvarez vs. Terence Crawford will help shape the legacy of two of boxing’s biggest names.

At last, a blockbuster for boxing.

[autotag]Canelo Alvarez[/autotag] and [autotag]Terence Crawford[/autotag] have agreed to fight in September in Las Vegas, according to The Ring.

The outcome will help shape the legacy of two of the sport’s biggest names.

Alvarez, once considered boxing’s best pound-for-pound fighter, has slipped to as low as No. 7 at the age of 34. He’d likely leap up the rankings with a victory over Crawford, who at 37 is ranked as high as No. 2.

It’s uncertain at what weight they’ll box. Crawford has never weighed in at more than 153 pounds – in his last fight, as a super welterweight ‒ and Alvarez has not weighed in at less than 166 pounds since 2019 – when he fought Rocky Fielding as a middleweight at 159 pounds.

Both men are future Hall of Famers in light of their accomplishments.

Alvarez (62-2-2, 39 KOs) has won world titles at four weight classes, from light middleweight to light heavyweight. He is currently the WBC and WBO super middleweight champion and is coming off a successful title defense against Edgar Berlanga by unanimous decision Sept. 14.

Alvarez’s only losses came against Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2013 by majority decision and to Dmitry Bivol in 2022 by unanimous decision. He has beaten the likes of Gennady Golovkin, Shane Mosley and Jermell Charlo.

Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs) also has won world championships in four weight classes, from lightweight to light middleweight. He currently is the world super welterweight champion and is coming off of a victory over Israil Madrimov by unanimous decision.

To date, his biggest win came over Errol Spence Jr. by TKO in 2023.