The message from Jake Paul's promotional company is clear after seemingly moving on from Tommy Fury this week: "When one door closes, another one opens".
Paul was in New York this week filming promotional material for his seemingly doomed Madison Square Garden fight night with Fury, but the Brit was unable to travel due to visa issues. And it appears that with the 8-0 boxer unwilling to secure an interview with the US Embassy, the fight may be cancelled.
And the YouTuber-turned-boxer, who was preparing to face his first 'legitimate boxer' in the Love Island star, is prepared to find a new opponent. He tweeted during the week that he had informed his team to try somebody else, and his promotional company today shared a message indicating that "another door" was about to open.
They also declared that he would be making an announcement relating to MMA imminently. They said in a later story: "Made boxing exciting again. MMA news coming soon."
Paul has continued his Puerto Rican training camp despite seemingly missing out on the Fury fight, which has yet to be officially cancelled. There is about a month left from today until fight week festivities would begin with an open workout in New York, which gives Fury a very tight deadline to fix his visa issue.
His promoter Frank Warren has echoed the fighter's sentiments that it is related to his ESTA visa, and nothing to do with separate bans that his brother; world heavyweight champion Tyson and dad John have been slapped with. He was rejected entry on Monday ahead of a press conference to launch the fight Wednesday.
This meant the event was cancelled, though Paul attended to shoot promos and help to push the fight night, whether Fury will be involved or not. It remains to be seen who he would draft in as a replacement, having ended up facing former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley last December when Fury first pulled out with an injury.
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The younger Fury has kept quiet over the past few days, but his promoter has indicated that the bout may not be dead yet. Embassy interviews have been difficult to come by for most average citizens due to the backlog caused by the near two-year travel ban that was lifted last November.
But the Brit may qualify for an expedited appointment and visa authorisation due to the nature of his visit. The ESTA [Electronic System for Travel Authorization] checks for the validity of passengers to travel under the visa waiver programme, but Fury would likely need a working visa to be able to engage in such a sporting event.
Paul's team are believed to have put out soft feelers for a replacement opponent, including UFC legend Anderson Silva. But Mirror Fighting understands that he has another booking near that time and would be unavailable.
