The fight between Jake Paul and Hasim Rahman Jr on August 6th has been creating headlines for many reasons, one being the weight disparity between the two men.
Rahman Jr is a natural Heavyweight who last tipped the scales at 224lbs, whereas Paul classes himself as a Cruiserweight and fights around the 190lb mark.
For the pay-per-view event at Madison Square Garden, Rahman Jr must initially make a 200lb limit before a second weigh-in on the morning of the fight where he must remain under 214lb. For the fight itself the 31-year-old can enter the ring under no restrictions.
The pro boxer, who lost his last fight to James Morrison via TKO, has revealed the pressure he’s under to meet the weight demands for the fight, with strict contractual penalties in place if he comes in over – with the possibility of receiving a purse as low as $5,000:
“Every pound [I come in] over I lose 25% of my purse.”
“They leave a lot of stuff out when you’re dealing with Jake Paul and his antics. For example, if I came in at 202lb for the weigh-in, and then 216lb for the rehydration weigh-in then I would get the minimum, which I think is $5,000.”
“Of two pounds they are that scared. They want to put all that pressure on me to make the weight to say ‘you’re losing 25% for every pound you’re over’ – so if I come in 204lb, I get the bare minimum which is capped at $5,000.”
The size discrepancy ahead of the fight is apparent to see with training footage released from Rahman’s camp showing the Heavyweight looking huge just a few weeks out from the fight: