Tommy Fury

Paul, the influencer turned prizefighter, had never faced a full-time boxer until Sunday's bout with Tommy Fury. It did not go well for him.

After defeating several nonboxers in their late 30s and mid-40s, Paul finally faced a younger opponent whose main sport was boxing. But whereas Tyson Fury, 34, has been a heavyweight champion since 2015, Tommy is best known for his role on the reality television show “ Paul landed occasional counter left hooks and lead right hands but never adjusted to Fury’s long, steady left jab. He has called out the retired welterweight champion Floyd Mayweather, who pummeled Paul’s brother, Logan, in a 2021 exhibition. Saudi backers put up [$77 million](https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/19/sports/usyk-joshua-fight-saudi-arabia.html) to bring an August rematch between Anthony Joshua and Oleksandr Usyk to the Jeddah Superdome. The bout was sold on the premise that it would settle the question of whether Paul, 26, a social media influencer with high-profile wins against a retired basketball player and M.M.A. But Fury, the half brother of Tyson Fury, the World Boxing Council heavyweight champion, had better boxing skills. The W.B.C. I had pressure on my shoulders, and I came through.” In October, a similar shot had dropped the retired mixed martial arts star Anderson Silva in his showdown with Paul, who gained fame through YouTube videos before turning to pro boxing. Paul entered Sunday’s contest with a lopsided social media advantage — 22.7 million Instagram followers to Fury’s 4.7 million. But Fury, a 23-year-old pro boxer from England, barely flinched.

Fury defeated Paul in a pay-per-view match Sunday in Diriyah, Saudi Arabia. It was Paul's first pro bout against a "real" boxer.

But, in the eighth, Paul’s stiff jab sent Fury to the canvas for a split second. But the referee interjected himself into the narrative by first penalizing Paul a point for apparently pushing down on Fury’s head in a clinch. Paul rallied with a knockdown in the eighth and final round to tighten up the scores. He said he disagreed with the judges’ results. Paul appeared to daze Fury with a pinpoint left hook early in the fifth round. Paul had constructed a 6-0 record against a fellow YouTuber, an NBA player and three over-the-hill MMA fighters.

YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul suffered his first career boxing loss in a split decision on Sunday night at the Diriyah Arena in Diriyah, Saudi Arabia.

Fury, however, was the first professional boxer Paul faced. “In my first main event, 23 years old, I had the world on my shoulders, and I came through,” Fury said after the fight. “This, to me, is a world title fight. And just like a genuine world title fight, there were plenty of stars ringside, including former champ Mike Tyson, soccer superstar Cristiano Ronaldo and comedian Kevin Hart. Fury was knocked down in the eighth round on a short-left hand by Paul but it was too late as the judges ruled in Fury’s favor. [YouTuber Jake Paul](https://www.cnn.com/2020/08/06/us/jake-paul-social-media-villain-trnd/index.html) suffered the first defeat of his fledgling boxing career on Sunday night as pro boxer-turned reality TV star Tommy Fury edged him out in a split decision in Saudi Arabia.