Jake Paul is one victory away from a world ranking after being promised a spot in the WBC's top 40 if he beats Hasim Rahman Jr next weekend.
The YouTube star will fight for the sixth time as a professional when he takes on the son of a legend at Madison Square Garden in New York. He has previously fought a fellow social media star, a retired basketball player and two former UFC stand-outs, with Rahman Jr representing his first opponent with a boxing record.
Rahman Jr has won 12 of his 13 fights with his sole defeat coming last time out when he was stopped by Tommy Morrison Jr. But despite that, WBC boss Mauricio Sulaiman has vowed to include Paul in his cruiserweight rankings if the 25-year-old remains unbeaten.
"Coming August 6, Jake Paul will take on Hasim Rahman Jr," he wrote on Twitter. "Winning this fight will earn him a WBC ranking." A spot in the top 40 will put Paul within sight of the top 15 which would be enough to earn him a world title shot, something the YouTuber has insisted he will achieve before he retires.
"The sky is the limit for me right now," Paul said during a lengthy Q&A session on his Youtube channel, responding to a question about what his ultimate boxing goal is. If I want to accomplish something it's all about me being able to do that and me making the commitment and putting in the work required to do that.
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"But I think right now, going to 10-0, being undefeated, fighting some big names, making history and maybe taking a world championship belt from somebody just to say I did it, and retiring at 10-0."
Paul had been due to take on Tommy Fury next month but the Brit pulled out of their fight for the second time in eight months. He was unable to fly to New York for a press conference and was unable to secure a visa in time to fulfil his commitment to Paul.
