It was roughly two years ago that Logan Paul announced his intention to get his ass kicked real good. It was roughly one year ago that the YouTube superstar announced it was “the beginning of the end.” And it was roughly one day ago that Paul’s prophesied end received a proper date. On February 20, the up-and-coming boxer—official record: 0-1—will square off against retired boxing legend Floyd Mayweather—official record: 50-1, 27 knockouts—in a match that will no doubt fetch both of them a hefty payday. Paul, we assume, is under the assumption that you can take it with you.
Mayweather made the announcement via Instagram on Sunday, with Paul confirming via his own socials. The bout marks Mayweather’s first sight since 2017, when he knocked out Conor McGregor. Paul, meanwhile, lost his only match to British YouTuber KSI in 2019. UFC president Dana White remarked on the fight’s absurdity during an interview with the NELK Boys. “When people ask me, ‘What’s the state of boxing right now?’ That’s where it’s at,” he said. “Didn’t that kid get beat up by the fuckin’ video game kid from England, and now he’s going to fight Floyd Mayweather?”
That’s exactly the point, though, isn’t it? People not only want to see Mayweather’s return, but they want to see a jacked but overwhelmed Paul, whose fateful trip to Japan’s suicide forest in 2018 is but one of his many controversies, get that stupid Toy Story hat punched off of his head. The pricing of the event reflects the promoters’ confidence in its potential popularity: The first million buyers will pay $24.99, with the price increasing more and more as the fight gets closer. And, based on the sentiment around the fight online, people would very much like to see the internet’s most punchable face get punched.
Hell, even the official account of Looney Tunes, which revels in cartoonish violence, can’t believe what it’s seeing. “lol what,” the account said in a reply, allowing us to envision a fight in which every punch Mayweather throws comes with a comical bonk.
2021 is going to be weird.
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