Abimbola Osundairo recently took a page out of Keith Thurman's book and called out Jake Paul to be a fill-in for Hasim Rahman Jr.
In a video reported by TMZ Sports, Osundairo made his case to Jake Paul and asked him not to cancel the event scheduled for Saturday, August 6th, at Madison Square Garden.
Osundairo stated:
"Do not cancel that fight, Jake Paul. Fight me instead, I am ready to fight this Saturday. I can make the weight, I'm currently 188. I can come in at 190, 195, it does not matter. So do not cancel the fight, do not rob the fans and even the undercard of an opportunity to display their gifts. I'm ready to fight and I'm better than Hasim Rahman Jr. or Tommy Fury."
After issues surfaced regarding Hasim Rahman Jr. inability to make the contracted 200-pound limit for their weigh-in, Paul's Most Valuable Promotions put out a statement that said the Athletic Commison wouldn't sanction anything under 205lbs.
Paul's team offered Rahman Jr. a new contract at the weight limit, but was made aware that Rahman Jr. had planned to weigh in at 215lbs, so the entire event was scrapped.
Watch Osundairo's call-out here:
Who will Jake Paul face next?
Seeing as it looks like the event for Saturday is officially canceled, despite Thurman and Osundairo calling Jake Paul out, who will he face next when he returns to the ring?
Prior to Hasim Rahman Jr., there were 2 failed fights with Tommy Fury, so the likelihood of seeing a third is slim. There is also former UFC champion Anderson Silva and talks of Conor McGregor, but with Paul turning his focus to strictly fighting boxers, it seems unlikely he will want to return to fighters from other disciplines.
Then there's Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. who Jake Paul admitted on social media that he was interested in fighting. There was no scheduled timeline for a matchup due to Chavez Jr. being in a treatment facility for drug abuse. So, for the time being, that fight is also off the table.
WBC President Mauricio Sulaiman stated that should Paul beat Rahman Jr., he would've been given a ranking at cruiserweight. If Paul is looking to get serious about making his name in boxing, it would be best if he sticks to fighting recognized boxers in order to receive a ranking.
At only 5-0, Paul is still young in his career, so fighting someone close to his level of experience will be a good test to see where his skills lie and what sort of holes in his gameplan can be exposed in an even matchup. A potential opponent for him that might be a good test would be Muhsin Cason, whom Rahman Jr. had even suggested to Paul as a short-notice replacement.
Paul's MVP posted this with the caption 'We will clap back' to Instagram: