Boxing

Insider Doesn't Deny Canelo Alvarez vs. Jake Paul Boxing Match Rumors

Combat sports insider Ariel Helwani got honest about the Canelo Alvarez vs. Jake Paul boxing match rumors.
Grant Young|
Jake Paul is in the Mixed Zone during the Kings World Cup Nations 2025 Final match between Brazil and Colombia.
Jake Paul is in the Mixed Zone during the Kings World Cup Nations 2025 Final match between Brazil and Colombia. | IMAGO / NurPhoto

On February 3, the biggest news within the boxing world was a report from The Ring that a fight between Saul "Canelo" Alvarez and Terence "Bud" Crawford would be taking place at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, likely in September 2025.

This would be the first boxing event to take place in Allegiant Stadium, which is the home of the Las Vegas Raiders NFL team.

This fight between these two icons has been in the works for some time, and therefore this announcement didn't come as much of a surprise. The timing isn't surprising either, given that Canelo tries to fight around Mexican Independence Day (September 16) every year.

Canelo also tries to fight on or around Cinco de Mayo (May 5) each year. Some recent reports indicate that despite this impending match against Crawford, he may have a polarizing opponent set up for May 2025.

According to a February 4 X post (that is translated from Spanish to English), from Mexican journalist Julianis Julius,:

"BREAKING NEWS

"There is already an agreement for Jake Paul to be Canelo Álvarez's rival in May of this year, a source very close to the operation informs me.

The event will be co-promoted by Canelo Promotions, MVP, PBC."

The potential for a Canelo vs. Jake Paul (who recently shattered global boxing viewership records when he fought Mike Tyson on Netflix last year) fight could turn the boxing world upside down.

Although it's worth noting that this is just a report from one journalist, combat sports insider Ariel Helwani didn't deny the validity of these reports during a February 4 episode of The Ariel Helwani Show.

"There are some reports now coming out that Canelo [vs.] Jake Paul is a thing in May, as well. Which, by the way, what a freaking year for Canelo Alvarez, holy s***. Those are two gigantic paydays... these are two massive things."

While Helwani didn't confirm the reports directly, he certainly didn't deny them either. And he's typically always in the know when it comes to these rumors.

In other words, Helwani bringing these rumors up on this show without denying their validity almost certainly means that there's some fire behind this smoke.

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Grant Young
GRANT YOUNG

Grant Young is a Staff Writer for On SI’s Boxing, New York Mets, Indiana Fever, and Women’s Fastbreak sites. Before joining SI in 2024, he wrote for various boxing and sports verticals such as FanBuzz and NY Fights. Young has a bachelor’s degree in marketing and a master’s degree in creative writing with an emphasis on sports nonfiction from the University of San Francisco, where he played five seasons of Division 1 baseball. He fought Muay Thai professionally in Thailand in 2023, loves a good essay, and is driven crazy trying to handle a pitpull puppy named Aura. Young lives in San Diego and was raised in the San Francisco Bay Area.