There is an unlikely sporting match up taking place this weekend in sunny Florida. Its unlikely as it features an amateur in every sense of the word vs an Olympic Gold medallist and two time heavyweight world champion. On paper at least it is a non contest, completely one sided and has the potential to be an absolute blow out.
Jake Paul, youtuber, entertainer, social media personality is taking on Anthony Joshua in a boxing match. AJ as he is known has been in the ring with some of the fiercest punchers in the world, Usyk, Klitschko, Povetin and Parker and lifted two world title belts. He has been in the ring from a young age, cut his teeth in his local gym in Watford. Experience wise he has had many world title fights. The fight on Friday night Jake Paul vs AJ, will make AJ more money thsn hes ever made before for fight.
Netflix and Jake Paul
Ordinarily AJ would never consider a fight against such a lowly opponent. What can he possibly be learned by such a matchup? Boxing is a sport but it’s also a business. Jake Paul has an incredible number of fans and subscribers who tune into his social channels. He can also create huge revenue through pay per view on his fights. Paul has had several fights and done crazy numbers. Clearly he has put a package together for AJ that he simply cannot refuse. He is making a fight that people said would never happen.
Regardless of how the Jake Paul and AJ fight transpires, it promises to have a huge world wide audience and do crazy money on pay per view. Could such a match up ever take place on the tennis court? Could an amateur social media star with huge following ever challenge a professional tennis player?
Tennis social media landscape
There are many tennis social media stars, hundreds of thousands, millions of followers on social media. There is not any in the ball park of Jake Paul, not even close. However, in what the lack in numbers of followers, these people have a much better education in the sport. Most, like AJ did with boxing, began tennis at a young age and have cut their teeth at varying levels of the game.
Brazilian tennis player Karue Sell is one such professional tennis player with a huge following on social media. Karue is documenting how he is turning Pro at 30 and attempting to break into the top echeleons of the game. Karue plays in the levels directly below the ATP tour which is normally reserved for players inside the top 100. In terms of his skillset, Karue is way closer to the top of the game of tennis than Jake Paul will ever be in boxing. I guess the opposite could be said if we were to compare their followers.
Another such tennis social media star is Rachel Stuhlman, a former NCAA player achieving a US ranking of 77. She enjoyed a college career but decided not to pursue a career in the pro ranks. Her tennis career has gone from strength to strength and she has recently been inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame, Emerging Leaders Council. Like Karue Sell, Rachel Stuhlman has a very strong tennis pedigree but not in the league of a professional player.
Social media pro tennis crossover.
Could a tennis exhibition take place between a Youtuber and a professional player? Like the Jake Paul and AJ matchup, if the money is right then there is always the possibility. Sport is a business and it puts bums on seats and money in pockets. To get a top professional tennis player to participate in an exhibition match, a promoter could need to put several million up for appearance money. In the Six Kings Slam, 1.6million USD was put up by the promoters for each player. From a money point of view, this is doable, especially given that AJ is reported set to bank £70million pounds for a night’s work.
A tennis match up with a social media star versus a top professional would work out different than a boxing fight. A boxing fight could be over in 1 round or one punch. A tennis match in the other hand would last minimum 6 games per set for 2 sets minimum. Anything from 20 minutes to two hours.
Tennis Exhibitions
Tennis exhibition matches have the reputation of being fixed. To a certain extent exhibition matches are. Paying punters pay to be entertained and a 6-0 6-0 washout wouldn’t prove a hit with the fans. Professional players can certainly dial it down a little to ensure there are at least competitive rallies even if the score can’t be competitive.
Tennis coaches the world round are experts in playing to the level of their clients. Conceivably there could be some pre matchup agreement to ensure that the professional tennis player keeps it competitive and close. Obviously unbeknownst to the general public. After all, why would they pay for an event with a pre determined outcome. The most viewed tennis exhibition in history was the Battle of the Sexes game with an audience in excess of 140million World wide. Not bad for almost 50 years ago.
Match for Africa had over 50,000 in attendance and featured Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. Tennis can do big numbers for sure especially if super charged with social media.
Boxing and Jake Paul.
Boxing as a whole does not like what Jake Paul is doing. Hes divisive, he has used his money to open doors and achieve a platform in the sport that some never have. Money cannot buy everything, and I doubt boxing will ever take Jake Paul ‘boxer’ seriously. His money can buy him the best training camps, coaching, sports science and preparation, there is simply no shortcut to the skillset and ability to take a punch.
One thing a tennis match up might highlight is the difference between a very good amateur in the mould of Rachel Stuhlman and a top professional. Ofcourse the amateur can ball really well, hit every shot, hit spots and look really well in a knock up. The big difference between the pro and amateur ranks is the depth and consistency. A professional player will be able to hit harder and certainly more consistently than any social media star.
A new audience to the game.
Would a social media star with millions of followers bring a new audience to the game? Jake Paul has brought a whole new audience to the boxing business. An individual with a similar profile could also bring a younger audience to the game. Trouble is, creating a competitive matchup between a pro and a youtuber would be nigh on impossible.
An amateur tennis player would struggle to get a racket on a professional serve let alone return it, a novice to the game would have no chance whatsoever.
Money talks in every walk of life. Jake Paul has showed that he is a major player in the entertainment business. Boxing isnt a game or a plaything and its dangerous cannot be underestimated. Carlos Alcaraz despite missing several tournaments due to injury over the past few months, Alacaraz still went and played exhibition matches in the off season.
Could the next Netflix smash be on the tennis court? If the money is right, a good product put together then tennis can absolutely benefit from this new craze.