By Elliot Raines: Retired 41-year-old former two-division world champion Andre Ward has reportedly been asked to step in as the replacement opponent for Jake Paul in an exhibition in December, as Gervonta Davis is expected to be pulled from the November 14th fight with Jake in Miami.
Think out, section in?
Mike Coppinger reports that Tank Davis is “expected to be withdrawn” from the November 14th exhibition. The magic question is why former super middleweight and light heavyweight champion Ward (32-0, 16 KOs) was asked. Ward has not fought since an eight-round knockout victory over faded 175-lb champion Sergey Kovalev on June 17, 2017.
Younger fans aren’t familiar with Ward, and they’d be less compelled to subscribe to Netflix to watch a fight involving him and YouTuber boxer Jake Paul. It’s not like Pauk is bringing 58-year-old former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson out of retirement for a fight. Ward was never a popular fighter, even during his fighting career.
The ward appeal problem
Ward’s popularity was limited to hardcore boxing fans, who were tolerant of his punching, grappling and grappling style. Fans who enjoyed watching wrestling liked Andre’s style, but not those who wanted to see everything, with punches thrown and limited holds.
Jake would be better off bringing another retired mothball relic back out of retirement if he wants to generate interest for his rescheduled exhibition match in November. It would be more interesting to ask one of these retired fighters:
Why not GGG or Loma?
- Gennady Golovkin
- Vasily Lomachenko
- Kostya Tszyu
- Carl Froch
- Joe Calzaghe
If Jake Paul is going to bring an older fighter out of retirement, he needs to pick someone who has been popular and has an entertaining style. Andre Ward was neither of those things during his career.
Elliot Raines has been covering British and European boxing since 2010. Known for his sharp pen and low tolerance for hype, Raines analyzes the sport’s politics, promoters and paper champions with dry precision.
Last updated on 11/03/2025
