Tank Davis Faces Jake Paul at 195

Gervonta “Tank” Davis is set to take the biggest leap of his career — literally. The undefeated lightweight champion will climb nearly 60 pounds up the scale to face Jake Paul in a 195-pound catchweight clash on November 14, confirmed Nakisa Bidarian, co-founder of Most Valuable Promotions, during Monday’s launch press conference for the Netflix spectacle.

For Davis, who reigns as the WBA lightweight champion at 135 pounds and has previously captured gold at 130, the jump is unprecedented. He has fought only once above lightweight, stopping Mario Barrios in 2021 to claim the WBA (regular) title at 140. Beyond that, he’s never ventured anywhere near the weight Paul operates in.

Paul, on the other hand, has made a career of fluctuating across divisions. The social media star weighed a career-low 183.75 in his lone professional defeat to Tommy Fury in early 2023, then bulked up to 227.25 pounds for his heavyweight spectacle with Mike Tyson last November. Most recently, he tipped the scales at 199.4 pounds for his victory over Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in June.

The bout will be contested over 10 three-minute rounds, a slight concession to Paul, who has never fought longer than 30 minutes in the ring. Davis, by contrast, is well accustomed to the championship standard of 12 three-minute rounds. Both men will wear 12-ounce gloves, another departure for Davis, who is used to fighting in 8-ounce gloves at the lighter divisions. Paul has worn 10-ounce gloves in most of his fights, except for the Tyson exhibition, which was contested with 14-ounce mitts.

While the fight is officially sanctioned as an exhibition, there will be three commission-approved judges scoring ringside. Should the fight go the distance, a winner will be declared — adding a layer of legitimacy absent from many celebrity exhibitions.

Originally slated for Atlanta, the bout was relocated to Miami’s Kaseya Center after the Georgia Athletic and Entertainment Commission balked at the idea. Commission chairman Rick Thompson publicly blasted the matchup, dismissing it as “the dumbest s*** I’ve ever heard” and a shameless “money-grabber.” Miami, it seems, is more than happy to host what promises to be one of the year’s most polarizing and talked-about spectacles.