Jake Paul has claimed he wants to fight Canelo Alvarez in what he believes would be a bigger fight than his upcoming showdown with Mike Tyson.
Paul takes on Tyson in a controversial event in Texas on Friday night, one that has been sanctioned as a professional fight and raises the prospect of a 58-year-old Tyson being knocked out, nearly 20 years after he last stepped into a ring for a competitive bout.
In his 11 fights to date, Paul has fought only three recognised boxers. Ryan Bourland and Andre August were little-known opponents, while Tommy Fury beat Paul on points last year.
However, that has not stopped Paul turning his attention to former undisputed super-middleweight champion Canelo, who still holds the WBA, WBC and WBO belts at 168lbs.
Asked if there was a fighter he wanted to call out, Paul told the TimboSugarShow podcast: "I do. It's Canelo. This moment will prove that I'm the face of boxing, the largest attraction.
“Me vs. Canelo at 200 pounds for the cruiserweight championship of the world is the biggest fight, arguably even bigger than me vs. Tyson. It makes so much sense. Canelo is on his way out. He's going to want a payday, and I want to show the world that all the s*** I've been talking about beating Canelo is actually true.”
Canelo, who is a four-weight world champion, does not hold a world title at cruiserweight and has never fought above 175lbs.
He remains one of the biggest pound-for-pound stars in the sport, even after defeat to Dmitry Bivol in 2022 when stepping up to challenge at light-heavyweight.
"I'll have the biggest upset in the sport of boxing, and we will fight to really see who actually is the face of boxing because, after this event, I'm going to claim it,” Paul continued.
“I beat his gate record in Texas, I'm beating the ticket sales, all of that stuff. So, the numbers and the data show it. I have more followers than him, etc. And now this is going to be the most watched fight of this century, so I'm going to be the new money magnet."
