Jake Paul will still have a fight on July 20. It just won't be against Mike Tyson.
Paul (9-1, 6 KOs) announced Tuesday via X that he will fight mixed martial artist and bare-knuckle boxer Mike Perry on July 20, the originally scheduled date for the Tyson-Paul fight. The announcement comes less than three weeks after Iron Mike had a medical issue that forced a postponement of the original fight.
Paul's fight against Perry will take place at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida and will be a pay-per-view event on DAZN.
It will be Paul's first competition since a TKO defeat of Ryan Bourland in early March. The Tampa bout will be Perry's second time in a professional boxing match and first since a fourth-round knockout loss to Kenneth McNeil in 2015. However, the former UFC fighter is undefeated (5-0, 3 KOs) in bare-knuckle boxing events since he started in 2022.
Perry was also previously a back-up fighter for a bout between Paul's brother, Logan Paul, and Dillon Danis late last year.
1 Mike, 2 Mikes, 3 Mikes, 4
The fact is every opponent has touched the floor
5 months until Tyson and I go to war
So in the meantime me & Perry are going to make Tampa roar
I fear no man, anytime, anywhere, anyplace
On July 20th it’s going to be another W, so let us say…
— Jake Paul (@jakepaul) June 18, 2024
In addition, Amanda Serrano (46-2-1, 30 KOs) will fight Stevie Morgan (14-1, 13 KOs) as a co-main event on the Paul-Perry fight card.
PAUL-PERRY FIGHT: Jake Paul to fight Mike Perry after Mike Tyson fight postponed
Jake Paul announces new fight with Mike Perry: Social media reacts
Paul's announcement of the new fight immediately set social media abuzz. Here are some of the top reactions to the Tampa bout news.
Some fans already have differing opinions on who will win the bout.
To be fair this will be a fun fight and a tough test for him...
That being said I still think Jake beats Perry
— TheSportsAlien 💎 (@Sports_Alien_OG) June 18, 2024
Former MMA fighter Brendan Schaub chimed in to say that he believes Perry is a "better" and "tougher" opponent for Paul than Tyson anyway.
MIKE TYSON VS. JAKE PAUL: When is postponed fight? New date, health updates, odds
MMA fighter Dillon Danis holds the opposite opinion – that Perry doesn't stand a chance.
Mike Perry is a 0-1 boxer. Bare-knuckle fighting isn’t the same as boxing. He’s going to get pieced up. Jake Paul only fights people he knows he can beat. He sparred with Perry before, which is why he chose him, just like that bum Hasim Jr. We all saw how bad he was, but Jake…
— Dillon Danis (@dillondanis) June 18, 2024
UFC fighter Renato Moicano wonders if Perry, currently the betting underdog, is "the best underdog of the year."
Mike Perry is the underdog against Jake Paul… is he the best underdog of the year!? #boxing
— Renato Moicano UFC (@moicanoufc) June 18, 2024
Not the Mike we expected, but it is the Mike we want
— Rami Hanna (@WhoElseButRami) June 11, 2024
Fighting Mike Perry while you wait for a 60-year-old version of Mike Tyson to get healthy is sort of like saying, hey I want to adopt a dog but first I think I’ll open my home to a rabid raccoon just so I can get used to the idea.
— Ben Fowlkes (@benfowlkesMMA) June 18, 2024
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jake Paul drops Mike Perry fight news, social media reacts
