Avila Perspective, Chap. 340: MVP in Orlando This Weekend

Avila Perspective, Chap. 340: MVP in Orlando This Weekend

Most Valuable Promotions, which has announced that the company’s co-founder Jake Paul will be fighting Gervonta “Tank” Davis in November, has quickly emerged as a major player on the boxing scene and dominates this weekend with two shows on DAZN on back-to-back nights, Friday, Aug. 22, and Saturday, Aug. 23.

The Caribe Royale Orlando in Orlando, Florida, will host both shows. DAZN will stream the MVP cards.

Featherweights Jan Paul Rivera-Pizarro (12-0) and Daniel Bailey (15-2) headline the Friday night card that includes about a dozen fights of all male combatants.

Things change on Saturday when two female world title fights headline the MVP card including Stephanie Han (10-0) defending the WBA lightweight title against Paulina Angel (7-1-2) and Jasmine Artiga (13-0-1) defending the WBA super fly title against Linn Sandstrom (10-3-3).

Two other female fights are also scheduled.

The male co-main events have super welterweights Yoenis Tellez (10-0) versus Abass Baraou (16-1) and lightweight knockout artist Lucas Bahdi (19-0, 15 KOs) facing veteran Roger Gutierrez (29-6-1, 22 KOs) who also has some pop.

Paul vs Tank in November

Paul’s match against Davis was just announced this week and has set the social media on fire mainly due to the size disparity between the two fighters. It will take place at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, on November 14. NETFLIX will stream the card.

Davis is quite small even in his own 135-pound weight class and will be matched against the much bigger Paul who stands above 6-feet in height and weighs 200 easily. That size difference has opened up a barrage of criticism from various people.

Physical mismatches have occurred many times in boxing. Maybe not to this extent but they have happened throughout boxing history.

When the great Jack Johnson fought Stanley Ketchel in 1909 in Northern Calif., some criticized the size difference. Johnson was known as the “Galveston Giant” and indeed had a size advantage but not as large as Paul’s and Davis.

When the diminutive Henry Armstrong – who had the same height as Davis – fought in the 1930s, he faced taller fighters like Sugar Ray Robinson and Fritzie Zivic, not much was made of it.

Smaller fighters do have an advantage in quickness and mobility, and if they have those tools that can make it very difficult for the opponent, but very boring for the fans who pay good money for these types of odd matchups.

Paul has shown a penchant for making odd but interesting fights that pique the curiosity of fans and those with little interest for boxing. He always seems to make money from odd matches. Of course, his Mike Tyson extravaganza was a once in a lifetime opportunity, but he did make other money-makers like the Nate Diaz and Anderson Silva fights. Nobody else thought of it.

I take that back. Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. did fight Anderson Silva and then just recently fought Paul. Sadly, Chavez was arrested and is now in a Mexican jail. His match with Paul this past June in Anaheim, also did good numbers.

Expect MVP to add some high-profile female fights too. That organization has plenty of talent to spread around including Amanda Serrano and others.

He’s got the touch.

Fights to Watch

Fri. DAZN 5 p.m. Jan Rivera (12-0) vs Daniel Bailey (15-2).

Sat. DAZN 3 a.m. Jake Wyllie (17-2) vs Youssef Dib (21-3); Skye Nicolson (13-1) vs Urvashi Singh (12-3).

Sat. DAZN 6 p.m. Lucas Bahdi (19-0) vs Roger Gutierrez (29-6-1); Stephanie Han (10-0) vs Paulina Angel (7-1-2); Jasmine Artiga (13-0-1) vs Linn Sandstrom (10-3-3).

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