Jake Paul open to fighting Viddal Riley but British cruiserweight must prove 'he deserves big payday'
Viddal Riley returns to action on the undercard of Natasha Jonas' unification battle with Ivana Habazin at the Liverpool Exhibition Centre on a blockbuster night of boxing; watch live on Sky Sports on Saturday from 7pm on Sky Sports+
Friday 13 December 2024 07:00, UK
Jake Paul's team say he would be open to fighting Viddal Riley, but the British cruiserweight insists he has bigger nights to tick off in his career before considering sharing the ring with the YouTube star.
Riley is backed by a huge social media following but has repeatedly underlined his ambitions to pursue a conventional boxing route in his bid to become a British and, ultimately, world champion.
Paul is meanwhile coming off a unanimous decision victory in his divisive fight against 58-year-old world heavyweight world champion Mike Tyson, which improved his record to 11-1 following his sole career loss to Tommy Fury back in February 2023.
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"Absolutely. We'd love to see Viddal headline cards in the UK and show that he has the big box office power," Nakisa Bidarian, co-founder of MVP Promoters, told Sky Sports.
"Look at Jake's career, it's been really two things. It's been fighting fighters who had name recognition or fighting appropriate or even overly appropriate journeymen for his level of experience and he's annihilated them in one round.
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"I'm sure for Viddal Riley if he's going to fight Jake Paul he's going to want a big payday. He has to show us that he deserves a big payday and if he can actually show that he has drawing power, that people are willing to pay to watch him fight in a stadium, on TV then that makes it a much more realistic fight."
Riley returns to the ring this Saturday on the undercard in Liverpool as Natasha Jonas fights Ivana Habazin in a unification for the IBF and WBC welterweight titles.
He is coming off arguably a career-best performance against Mikael Lawal, during which he overcame broken ribs to cruise to a unanimous decision victory and retain his English title.
If a fight with Paul is to happen, he believes it won't be until long in the future.
"That's something that will be done way down the line, not for now, we've got important and serious things to happen," Riley told Sky Sports.
"If those things are ticked off and we reach a certain level then maybe we can entertain that fight. Until then, I don't think about it."
Boxxer promoter and CEO Ben Shalom believes Riley's swift development would deter Paul and his team from taking a fight with the cruiserweight contender.
"I'd like to see Viddal win a world title first (before a Jake Paul fight)," Shalom told Sky Sports. "Ultimately, although they can see his development, I think that would put them off more than anything.
"Viddal is an elite cruiserweight, Jake Paul doesn't want to fight elite cruiserweights, if he wants to fight an elite cruiserweight I can't see anybody that brings more to the table than Viddal Riley.
"Viddal has gone down the professional boxing route for a reason, it means a lot to him, it burns in him. People have different fights, Viddal doesn't want YouTubers or retired fighters, he wants to prove himself as one of the best in this country and going forward. One is a future world champion, one is a big star outside of boxing, whether they ever want that fight we'll see."
The 27-year-old meanwhile continues to be linked with a domestic clash against Isaac Chamberlain as Riley seeks to take further steps towards the world stage.
"I know Viddal's focus is on titles," Shalom added. "He wants titles not money, it's refreshing, there aren't many fighters like that and it takes a fighter of huge self-belief.
"Some fighters have that level of belief and have dreamed about getting to that top level for so long, that they won't give up anything for that.
"He's always made it clear to me to not treat him like this and that he's not a YouTuber and that he wants to prove himself as the best in the country and world."
Jonas vs Habazin live on Sky Sports
Watch Natasha Jonas vs Ivana Habazin and Lauren Price vs Bexcy Mateus on December 14, live on Sky Sports+ from 7pm and Sky Sports Main Event from 8.30pm, or follow updates via our dedicated live blog on the Sky Sports website and app.
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