Jake Paul‘s next opponent could be a former middleweight world champion.
Paul was victorious earlier this month when he went up against boxing legend Mike Tyson, in a bout that divided opinion within the sport.
Many fans felt that ‘Iron Mike’ shouldn’t be competing professionally at the age of 58, and a lot of those theories were proven right when the boxing legend struggled to cope with his much younger opponent.
Paul ran out a comfortable unanimous decision winner after eight two-minute rounds, and has since had a number of elite fighters call him out to face next.
One man that now appears to be a frontrunner for the bout is former middleweight champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. He held the WBC strap at 160lbs from 2011 to 2012, defeating fighters such as Andy Lee, Peter Manfredo Jr and Sebastian Zbik.
Since losing his belt he has struggled to get back to those heights, suffering one-sided defeats to Canelo Alvarez and Daniel Jacobs, but was victorious in his first fight for nearly three years back in July.
Chavez Jr has now told TUDN MEX that he has been approached about potentially taking on Paul and is considering the offer.
“It’s an option, we’re looking into it, let’s see, this week I have a meeting. I’d be interested in fighting a champion, but fighting Jake Paul, for the fame and the media, would put me in a position to fight against others. I’m not looking for it, it’s been presented. It’s not concrete, but let’s see what happens.”
Chavez Jr isn’t the only former world champion to express interest in a bout with Paul, with ex-heavyweight titleholder Shannon Briggs also making it clear that he wants to take on ‘The Problem Child.’
