Is Anderson Silva one step closer to fighting Jake Paul?
MMA Fighting’s Mike Heck confirmed with the Arizona State Boxing and Mixed Martial Arts Commission that Silva has received a boxing license to fight in Arizona, following an initial report from MMA Junkie. An opponent and date has not yet been announced for the former UFC middleweight champion’s next fight, but MMA Fighting previously confirmed that a bout between Silva and Paul is in the works for an October date.
Paul’s team tweeted that YouTuber-turned-boxing star’s next bout will be made official soon, but details have already begun to trickle in with NoSmokeBoxing first reporting that the fight is targeted for Oct. 29 and boxing journalist Dan Rafael reporting that the bout is expected to land in Phoenix. Silva’s newly acquired boxing license lends further credence to Rafael’s report.
Neither Paul nor Silva have publicly confirmed the matchup, though should it happen it would pair Paul with another former MMA champion after previously defeating welterweight titleholders Tyron Woodley and Ben Askren inside the squared circle. Silva, 2-0 since returning to boxing with wins over Tito Ortiz and Julio Cesar Chavez, has been a popular choice to challenge Paul. This past December, oddsmakers had Silva as the favorite to fight him after Paul knocked out Woodley.
UFC President Dana White recently commented on the potential matchup following an episode of Dana White’s Contender Series, saying, “I don’t give a s*** about [Jake Paul], but if he’s really fighting Anderson Silva, if that’s true, it’s about time. He’s got a real fight on his hands there, regardless of how old Anderson is. Yeah, that’s a real fight.”
