The assertion that Jake Paul vs. Hasim Rahman Jr. was cancelled due to insufficient ticket sales was just refuted by Madison Square Garden.
The theory was first floated by UFC president Dana White at a news confrence. White insisted that Paul needs to change the team around himself and that the event was likely cancelled due to how pricey Madison Square Garden and New York are in general.
Of course, Dana White is mainly salty about Nakisa Biderian – former chief financial officer of the UFC who has since joined forces with Jake Paul and had founded the MVP promotion.
Initial statement outlines that Rahman Jr’s failure to make weight was to blame for the cancellation of the entire card.
MVP was sent two weight checks by Hasim Rahman’s management team. July 7 and July 10. Both were 216. We requested these videos to ensure Mr. Rahman did not have to lose more than 10% of his body weight over a 4 week period. https://t.co/n8tKkRXEX7
— Most Valuable Promotions (@MostVpromotions) August 1, 2022
Rahman Jr. has also refuted that, hinting through Instagram that he would even make weight on Friday to prove to everyone that he was capable of competing.
Representative of Madison Square garden told media:
“To be clear, sales were strong heading into fight week —a the cancellation was not based on ticket sales. This fight was projected to be in the top 10 of highest grossing boxing events at MSG in the past 15 years. MVP has been great partners and we’re looking forward to working with them again soon.”
There are speculations that Paul would face Tommy Fury in UK or even former kickboxer turned internet provocateur Andrew Tate but either of those is highly unlikely at this time.
It is unknown who Paul has scheduled as his next opponent or even when that bout will take place. A bout between Fury and himself could be difficult to promote since it has already been postponed twice – in addition to Fury’s travel ban which is unlikely to get resolved any time soon.