Jermall Charlo has weighed in on the cruiserweight contest between Jake Paul and Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.
The YouTube superstar turned boxer looks to build on his controversial Mike Tyson win by facing the former middleweight world champion and son of fighting legend, Chavez Jr, who has suffered issues outside of the ropes and long bouts of inactivity.
The fight – set for Saturday June 28 at the Honda Centre in Anaheim, California – will be Paul’s 13th contest, with 11 of those being victories, seven by knockout, and one a defeat at the hands of Tommy Fury.
Speaking to TMZ Sports after saying that Paul would never face an active and dangerous fighter like himself, Charlo said that the Chavez fight is a different prospect entirely.
“That’s different. Julio Cesar Chavez is done. He don’t even box no more. He came back for the Jake Paul fight cause it’s the name and the money, stuff like that. Jake Paul the YouTuber is doing financially well. If you fight him, it looks good on his resume if he can beat Chavez. I think he beats him.”
Charlo – who recently beat Thomas LaManna inside the distance to set up a super-middleweight title charge – shares that opinion with the likes of Teddy Atlas, who does not give 39-year-old Chavez much of a chance come fight night.
Should Paul continue his winning run, he has been offered legitimate world title shots by the likes of Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez. Whether or not he and his team believe that is the correct move remains to be seen.
