Jake Paul could earn himself a WBC ranking if he beats Tommy Fury in their grudge fight, but he will be ineligible to fight for a world title regardless of the outcome.
YouTuber-turned-boxer Paul and Love Island star Fury will finally meet next weekend in Saudi Arabia after two previous bookings between the pair have fell through. A chest infection and broken rib saw Fury pull out of a fight against Paul in December 2021, with the Brit also withdrawing from their rescheduled fight last August.
WBC President Mauricio Sulaiman has confirmed Paul will receive a spot in the organisation's top 40 if he beats Fury, but the American will have to pump the brakes on his world title hopes for now. According to the rules of the governing body, fighters are only eligible to compete for a world title if they are ranked in the top 15, meaning Paul will need to rack up a few more wins before competing for a belt.
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Paul was also guaranteed a world ranking if he beat son-of-a-legend Hasim Rahman Jr last August, but the fight ended up being cancelled due to a weight dispute. 'The Problem Child' has since beat UFC legend Anderson Silva as he looks to extend his unbeaten professional record to seven fights against Fury, who has a record of 8-0.
Fury hasn't fought professionally since winning on the undercard of his heavyweight champion brother Tyson's world title fight last April. The 23-year-old was supposed to face Paul Bamba on the undercard of Floyd Mayweather vs Deji last November but a last minute opponent change saw the Brit face Rolly Lambert in an un-scored exhibition fight instead.
Paul is keeping up his tradition of making pre-fight bets with his opponents by challenging Fury to change his surname to Mae if he loses, in reference to his partner Molly Mae Hague. The 26-year-old offered Fury an extra $500,000 if he could beat him in their ill-fated fight last year, but only if he agreed to change his name to Tommy 'Fumbles' if he lost.
Fury isn't paying attention to Paul's pre-fight challenges as he told Mirror Fighting : "You're talking to a professional athlete, all that bull***, I'm here for a fight. There's no name changes, no nothing. All those YouTube bets you've heard him made with other guys in the past, they're all idiots not serious fighters. I'm a serious fighter and I only do fighting, I don't do name changes."
