Jake Paul continued to call for a fight with undisputed super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez (60-2-2, 39 KOs) following his first-round knockout win over Ryan Bourland (17-3, 6 KOs) in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Paul (9-1, 6 KOs), a YouTube phenom/professional boxer, dominated proceedings against Bourland in a one-sided affair which saw Bourland withdrawn by referee Luis Pabon after 2:37 of the round as Bourland dropped to his knees after an unanswered flurry of punches.
Post-fight, speaking to DAZN, Paul reiterated his hopes for a future contest against the biggest pay-per-view driver in the sport in the form of Canelo.
“Canelo, stop ducking,” Paul said. “I know you want it. I’m repping Puerto Rico, you’re repping Mexico, so it’s Puerto Rico vs Mexico.”
Canelo is one of many fighters Paul has targeted in recent months, including retired former unified super middleweight champion and Hall of Famer Carl Froch, having retired almost 10 years ago.
Paul, whose one loss came to Tommy Fury, believes he is the biggest name in the sport while claiming he is repeatedly proving his doubters wrong.
“I want Canelo,” he continued. “I want all the biggest names. Like I said, I’m the face of this sport. Truly, who’s doing more for boxing than me? I keep on proving myself time and time again.
“I’m on the path to [becoming] world champion, and I want to keep on fighting tougher fights. If a money fight pops up, I’ll take it because those are fun. But for now, I’m staying on the path of fighting real fighters and increasing the level of opposition.”
Despite Paul’s best intentions, reports suggest that Canelo will face Jaime Munguia in May.