Jake Paul has made his world title ambitions clear.
The 28-year-old YouTuber-turned-boxer made his return to the ring on June 28, outpointing Mexican former WBC middleweight champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr over ten rounds at the Honda Center in Anaheim.
After what was a dominant display against an uninspiring Chavez, ‘The Problem Child’ has now set his sights on moving towards a shot at a legitimate world title at some stage in the near future.
Pre-fight, Paul had revealed:
“My goal is to become world champion and the WBA and WBC plan on ranking me depending on my performance. And once I’m ranked I can go for the title shot.”
WBC President Mauricio Sulaiman also spoke in an interview with Action Network before Paul’s victory over the Mexican, where he said the 28-year-old would be considered for a world ranking if he won.
“My personal opinion is yes, we do have a rankings committee, but I believe he has done enough and he has received all the backlash for several years. If he beats Julio Cesar Chavez Jr, I think that puts him in a different position.”
Sulaiman’s opinion clearly didn’t stack up with that of the rankings committee, as in the latest update Paul is nowhere to be found, not least the top fifteen.
Paul had set his sights on facing is reigning WBC cruiserweight champion Badou Jack, who successfully defended his crown against Noel Mikaelian on May 3. However, an immediate rematch was ordered and the challenger has refused to step aside. A deal has now reportedly been struck, leaving Paul without his shot for now. Regardless of Jack’s plans, the rules state that a contender must be ranked 15 and above to be eligible for a shot at the champion.
He is, however, currently ranked at number 14 by the WBA, meaning he could be offered a voluntary shot by Gilberto Ramires. But, in another blow, the sanctioning body has said that they will review the decision due to backlash.
