Boxing

JAKE PAUL detached bare-knuckle fighter Jake Bostwick’s lip in sparring. The incident occurred ahead of the YouTuber’s win over Ben Askren and Bostwick has opened up on the session in question.
Jake Paul detached a bare-knuckle fighter’s lip ahead of his fight against Ben AskrenCredit: Getty
The incident occurred during a sparring session with Jake Bostwick
Paul is preparing for an eagerly anticipated clash against rival Tommy Fury on December 18 in Florida.
He has already beaten retired MMA stars Askren and Tyron Woodley in previous boxing bouts, as well as former NBA player Nate Robinson.
And Bostwick has poured cold water on the suggestion Paul is not a real fighter.
Recalling the 2020 incident, Bostwick told Cene Magazine: “He was sparring with some guys in Miami not far from me and I was hearing that he was lighting some people up and giving out some really good work.
“He needed some more sparring partners and they were feeling out some guys – this was for the Askren fight.
“So I got a couple of messages saying there was a good opportunity to come down for some sparring with Jake Paul.

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“So I was down for it, but the guy said ‘Listen, the guy can box, please don’t think he can’t.’
“And this was coming from a professional coach, a guy I know.
“I was driving down there and I was nervous, it’s like an hour drive, and I was thinking ‘Oh, there’s gonna be all these cameras and all his boys, I really need to show up’.
“We did three solid rounds and he caught me with some shots! “He hit me with an uppercut and detached my top lip.
“He caught me with some s*** and I was like ‘What the f***?'”
Bostwick currently fights in the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship and is waiting to learn who his next opponent will be.

And Paul is in the middle of training camp ahead of the Fury fight in just over two weeks time.
Amir Khan recently warned the American he is going to get ‘badly hurt’ against Fury.
And bookies have the Brit as odds on favourite.
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EDDIE HEARN has revealed it will take at least £40million for Anthony Joshua to give up his rematch with Oleksandr Usyk.AJ lost his heavyweight world titles to the Ukrainian back in September at the Tottenham Stadium.
Anthony Joshua would want at least £40m to step-aside from his rematch with Oleksandr UsykCredit: Getty
Tyson Fury wants to unify the heavyweight division by facing the UkrainianCredit: Rex
The Brit, 32, instantly invoked his rematch clause with the potential bout set to take place in the Spring.
However, after Fury retained his WBC belt against Deontay Wilder, there has been talk that the Gypsy King is pushing to unify the division and face Usyk instead.
The winner of that would then defend against Joshua if he agreed to step aside.
AJ’s promoter has blasted Fury’s co-promoter Bob Arum previously for suggesting that Joshua should step aside and claimed the rematch is ‘none of his f***ing business’.
Usyk’s promoter has also claimed his man would ‘be happy’ to fight Fury if Joshua agreed.
Now Matchroom chief Hearn has admitted that could happen to Boxing King Media – but only for a hefty price.

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He said: “We’ve had their team reach out to us.
“Seven figures? A million? If you want to get him not to fight Oleksandr Usyk you have to times that by 40…”
Hearn added: “At the moment there is communication between the two teams to say is it something… and the answer is AJ has not been spoken to about this yet.
“I’ll deal with it and when I feel there’s an opportunity for Anthony and 258 [Management] we’ll sit down with them and present it to them but I won’t do that until it’s the right opportunity.
“If there’s a route and an offer and it makes sense then we’ll see but right now, it’s just conversations between the camps.
“At the moment Anthony Joshua is fighting Oleksandr Usyk and that’s the situation.” More

FLOYD MAYWEATHER has shocked the boxing world by claiming Canelo Alvarez may have been ‘not clean’ throughout his legendary career.Now retired ‘Money’ defeated the Mexican icon eight years via majority decision in the latter’s only loss to date.
Floyd Mayweather has questioned whether Canelo Alvarez has been clean throughout his careerCredit: Getty
The Mexican is now recognised as the best P4P fighter on the planetCredit: Getty
Canelo has gone on to become a four-weight world champion and has unified three divisions – with the 31-year-old now intending to move up to cruiserweight.
He is widely considered to be the best pound-for-pound boxer on the planet.
However, Canelo was handed a six-month suspension after testing positive for banned substance clenbuterol on two separate occasions back in 2018 – something he blamed on eating contaminated meat.
And that is something Mayweather does not want to forget as he spoke to the media this week ahead of his fighter Gervonta Davis’ clash with Isaac Cruz this weekend.
Mayweather, 33, said: “What we don’t talk about is, uh Canelo, Canelo, Canelo. Steroids, steroids, steroids!
“We don’t talk about that, so we don’t know all the fighters he beat. He could have been not clean in a lot of fights.”

When quizzed on whether he thought Canelo was clean when they collided back in 2013, he replied: “I don’t know. That kid was a cakewalk. He was easy for me.”
Mayweather also accused Canelo of ‘ducking’ David Benavidez and slammed his cruiserweight fight with Ilunga Makabu.
Canelo knocked out Caleb Plant and then had a request accepted by the WBC to step up and challenge cruiserweight champion Makabu, 34.
It would mean challenging for a world title in his FIFTH division and facing an opponent over TWO STONE heavier.
But Mayweather named unbeaten former super-middleweight champ Benavidez, 24, as the better fight to take.
He told reporters: “If it was up to me, we want to see Benavidez. Canelo a helluva fighter but my personal opinion, he’s ducking Benavidez.
“That’s just my personal opinion and I’m allowed to speak my mind, that’s what it is.
“He’s going up to cruiserweight — and I’m not knocking him — and that same guy at cruiserweight used to be at the Mayweather Boxing Gym.
“The guys were really getting the best of him in the Mayweather Boxing Gym so if he’s going up to ‘cruiserweight,’ Benavidez can go up and beat that same guy.
“But when you are put in a certain position he, like me, when I was in the position I can pick and choose who I want to because I earned that right.
“But do I like this fight, absolutely not. We want to see Benavidez. Let’s make it happen.” More

TYSON FURY still managed to deliver a verbal jab to rival Anthony Joshua while touring the UK.The WBC heavyweight champion is riding high after successfully defending his title in an epic trilogy fight victory over Deontay Wilder.
Tyson Fury led an X-rated sing-along aimed at AJ in Manchester
The Gypsy King has been embarking on a UK homecoming tour over recent weeksCredit: Rex
However, any hopes of that setting up a bumper all-British unification showdown were already over after AJ suffered defeat to Oleksandr Usyk in September.
The Gypsy King, who has been invited to challenge WWE champion Big E at WrestleMania, was expecting to defend his title against mandatory challenger Dillian Whyte in February or March until red tape with the WBC scuppered that.
Now there is talk that Joshua could step-aside from his rematch with Usyk to let his countryman face the Ukrainian instead to determine the undisputed champ.
However, while Fury waits to discover what is next in store for him, he is keeping himself busy by touring the UK.
And on Thursday in Manchester he quickly got his hometown crowd on-board as they joined in an X-rated sing-along about Joshua.
A clip of it was soon posted and going viral on social media in which Fury could be heard singing along with the crowd: “AJ is a p***y.”

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Everyone knows how much the star loves to sing, and he also belted out one of his favourites with a rendition of American Pie.
Joshua recently hinted that he could move over and let his foe face Usyk first during an interview with iFL TV, saying: “That step aside thing, it may not go with what I stand for in terms of bringing me respect, fighting the best, but it may make sense for business.”
Fury’s promoter Frank Warren also said: added: “Obviously there’s conversations (about Joshua stepping aside) but that will have a limit of time where suddenly it’s either gonna happen or its not.
“I don’t think everybody’s gonna be waiting around for that. But I’m quite positive and feel positive that there is between everybody a will to get it done.”
Tyson Fury (R) was in the corner of Isaac Lowe at York Hall on Friday nightCredit: Rex More

GERVONTA DAVIS may be dubbed the most exciting fighter since Mike Tyson – but comparing him to mentor Floyd Mayweather is deemed unfair. Boxing great Mayweather signed Davis in 2015, just two years before he retired a perfect 50-0.
Floyd Mayweather, Gervonta Davis and Leonard EllerbeCredit: Sean Michael Ham
Mike Tyson pictured as heavyweight champion in 1988Credit: Getty
Since then, protege ‘Tank’ has won belts in three divisions, scored 24 knockouts in his 25 straight wins and returns against Isaac Cruz on Sunday.
Most importantly for Mayweather Promotions, Davis is also a pay-per-view star, selling almost 500,000 buys combined in his last two fights and a ticket seller.
The hard-hitting American has a 96 per cent knockout ratio and is proving to be one of the biggest attractions in the sport.
Leonard Ellerbe, CEO of Mayweather Promotions, has helped carve Davis’ rise to stardom.
And he believes no one since Iron Mike’s most destructive prime has guaranteed such all-out action in the ring.
Ellerbe told SunSport: “There’s a number of great fighters out there with the ability to create nothing but excitement for the fans.

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“You can’t just place it on one particular fighter.
“There’s not just one fighter that just stands out that I can recall it recent times, except Mike Tyson. We all know Mike Tyson was.
“The most important thing is that in Tank’s short career, he’s had the ability to attract fans to want to come out and support his events.
“Whether that be coming to his live events or they watch at home. Again, he’s the most exciting fighter in the entire sport.
“People have gravitated towards him and when you look at this younger generation of fans out there, they talk about one fighter and one fighter only, and that’s Tank Davis.
“Gervonta Davis has put himself in a position where he’s must-see TV, and you know why? Because he gives the fans exactly what they want to see.”
Since Mayweather officially hung up the gloves – baring a couple of money-spinning exhibitions – he has passed down his boxing hopes to young Davis.
Mario Barrios was beaten by Gervonta DavisCredit: Amanda Westcott
Gervonta Davis knocked out Mario Barrios in his last fightCredit: Amanda Westcott
Before his pupil’s destructive knockout against Leo Santa Cruz in October 2020, he went as far to say: “The ultimate goal is to get him to surpass me.”
But even Ellerbe argues it is unjust to expect as much from Davis, whose front-foot southpaw style contrasts with Mayweather’s.
He said: “Too many people are comparing them and I’m not a fan of that at all.
“Floyd Mayweather, he was the best to ever do it, he broke all kinds of records and that’s what Floyd’s legacy is.
“I don’t think it’s fair for Tank to put that on him as he’s a completely different type of fighter.
“Tank is definitely leading this new generation, this decade of young fighters, and he’s still just getting started and we haven’t seen Tank’s boxing skills.
“Tank right now, his boxing skills is right up there with the top guys in the entire world, as it relates to skillset.
“Tank has the ability to box several ways in any fight.”
Gervonta Davis congratulated by mentor Floyd MayweatherCredit: Amanda Westcott
Floyd Mayweather and Leonard EllerbeCredit: Amanda Westcott
Mayweather, 44, last year announced intentions to transition into coaching having been inspired after the death of his former coach and uncle Roger.
He has been hands on in Davis’ camps in recent fights, holding the pads and issuing advice during sparring sessions.
But this time around, before Davis, 26, fights Mexican Cruz, 23, Mayweather has been absent in the sessions, instead relying on feedback from his right hand man.
Ellerbe revealed: “He hasn’t been in the gym a lot, as he has a number of things that he’s working on himself.
“But he continues to support Tank. Gervonta’s his biggest fighter and Floyd is very proud of him with all of his accomplishments.
“Floyd and I talk everyday, about his progress, how he’s coming along. So Floyd doesn’t necessarily have to be hands on.
“He’s hearing it first hand from me, and the fact of the matter is, so long as Floyd’s in Tank’s corner and supporting him, that’s everything, it means the world.”
Gervonta Davis training to fight Isaac CruzCredit: Sean Michael Ham
Gervonta Davis is promoted by Floyd MayweatherCredit: Sean Michael Ham More