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INTERNATIONAL SUPERSTAR JAKE PAUL OBLITERATES PRO BOXER ANDRE AUGUST WITH A VICIOUS FIRST ROUND KNOCKOUT
MVP’s Jake Paul takes next step in championship journey with a viral knockout of the year candidate on record-breaking evening in front of a sellout crowd in Orlando, Florida
Franchón Crews-Dezurn claims title as new WBC super middleweight world champion with unanimous decision over Shadasia Green
Yoenis Tellez stuns the crowd with a jaw-dropping 10th round knockout of Livan Navarro to claim the WBA Continental Latin Americas title
Historic event brought out the stars like Vivek Ramaswamy, Chantelle Cameron, and Team USA Boxing stars Mo McCane and Joshua Edwards
ORLANDO, FL - December 15, 2023 – In an incredible night for Most Valuable Promotions, Jake “The Problem Child” Paul (8-1 5 KOs) put on his most impressive performance to date with a viral first round knockout of three-time Golden Gloves winner Andre August (10-2-1 5 KOs) for his eighth professional win as he continues on his journey to become a world champion. In the special championship feature ahead of Paul vs August, presented by CELSIUS Live Fit. Essential Energy, Franchon “The Heavy Hitting Diva” Crews-Dezurn (9-2, 2 KOs) won by unanimous decision over MVP’s Shadasia “The Sweet Terminator” Green (13-1, 11 KOs), becoming the new WBC Super Middleweight World Champion and WBA Interim Champion.
Paul went back to his old self, having fun and provided fans a show from the start. He surprised the crowd when he walked out with Team USA Boxing stars Morelle McCane and Joshua Edwards, dancing to “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree”, but once he stepped into the ring he was all business. Paul was extremely calculated from the opening bell and put August to the mat for the knockout in under 3 minutes with a beautiful right uppercut. Paul showed tremendous growth as a boxer and added to his already impressive highlight reel, with another Knockout of the Year candidate. He proved his starpower yet again and brought a raucous sold-out crowd to its feet, including Presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswany, Chantelle Cameron, Riddick Bowe, Tyron Woodley Team USA Boxing stars Mo McCane and Joshua Edwards and MVP’s H2O Sylve, who will headline Most Valuable Prospects V in Orlando, Florida on Friday, February 2nd.
Paul also continued his record-breaking streak, by achieving the highest recorded gate for a boxing event in Orlando’s history. Puerto Rican fighter Miguel Cotto’s bout vs. Delvin Rodriguez at the Amway Center, which has a capacity of 20,000, in October 2013 previously held the record in Orlando. Paul vs. August also broke the record for highest average ticket price, matching the average ticket price of Paul’s latest fight vs. Nate Diaz at the American Airlines Center in Dallas.
Since headlining his first fight, Paul has broken records at every arena he’s fought at across his 9-fight professional career. Paul’s record-setting appearance in Dallas, TX for Paul vs. Diaz was the highest boxing gate and second biggest combat sports gate ever at the American Airlines Center. Previously, Paul vs. Silva broke a record for the highest boxing gate at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, and Paul vs. Woodley II set the record for the highest combat sports gate at Amalie Arena in Tampa. Paul vs. Woodley I was the highest boxing gate ever at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland.
Ahead of Paul vs. August, Franchón Crews-Dezurn (9-2, 2 KOs) earned a unanimous decision win (98-92, 97-93x2) over MVP’s Shadasia Green (13-1, 11 KOs) to become the new WBC super middleweight champion and the WBA Interim Champion. The two battled it out in a special championship feature, but Crews-Dezurn ultimately came out victorious after a challenging 10 rounds. Crews-Dezurn was emotional after the win as she shared her pride for her family, community, and women’s boxing.
Most Valuable Promotions also continued to showcase top up-and-coming talent with its exhilarating fourth installment of its Most Valuable Prospects series at the Caribe Royale Resort. In the highly anticipated 10-round super welterweight Cuban battle between undefeated star prospect Yeonis Tellez (7-0, 6 KOs) vs. Livan Navarro (15-2, 9 KOs), the crowd was on their feet by the third round as Tellez knocked down Navarro following a vicious combination. Tellez went on to claim the WBA Continental Latin Americas title with a nasty left hook that sent Navarro to the mat in a jaw-dropping 10th round knockout.
Ahead of Tellez vs. Navarro, the 19-year old heavy hitter and Most Valuable Prospects fan favorite Lorenzo “The Giant Killer” Medina (9-0, 8 KOs) traded shots with the more experienced Joshua Temple (12-3, 10 KOs) before Medina’s overwhelming barrage of punches early in the sixth round secured a TKO in the energetic 6-round heavyweight fight. In wild a post-fight interview with Ariel Helwani, Medina thanked Temple’s wife for the encouragement to win, and said Temple “fucking sucked.”
In the preliminary rounds, welterweights Elijah Flores (7-0, 2 KOs) vs. Javier Mayoral (6-4-1, 1 KO) faced off in a grueling 6-round bout, in which Elijah Flores won by unanimous decision (60-54, 59-55, 59-55). The bantamweight fight between Alex “Alley Cat” Gueche (3-0, 3 KOs) vs. Clayton Ward (1-1, 1 KO) ended with Gueche’s third round TKO of Ward. Zachary “The Razorback” Randolph (10-3-1, 3 KOs) took home a majority decision (57-57, 60-54, 58-56) against Michael “Pittsburgh Bull” Manna (7-6, 4 KOs) in a 6-round cruiserweight bout.
Most Valuable Prospects IV continues the commitment from MVP co-founders Jake Paul and Nakisa Bidarian to highlight the world’s best up-and-coming boxing talent. All events within Most Valuable Prospects in 2023 have taken place on Friday nights at the Caribe Royale Resort in Orlando, FL. The series has been renewed for six installments in 2024 and DAZN will air the series globally across its platforms as a part of its subscription package. CELSIUS Live Fit. Essential Energy acts as the presenting sponsor of the Most Valuable Prospects Series, with DraftKings serving as the Official Sports Betting Partner for Most Valuable Prospects IV.
Commentary for the event was provided by an all-star broadcast team consisting of Todd Grisham, Wade Plemons, and Dan Canobbio. Beloved YouTube boxing commentator Wade Plemons hosted the show, while Dan Canobbio of Jomboy Media, the Fox Sports’ boxing regular and host of Pluto TV’s Inside Boxing Live returned as analyst and commentator. ESPN veteran and DAZN combat sports reporter Todd Grisham provided commentary and called the fights throughout the Paul vs. August and Most Valuable Prospects IV main card. Famed combat sports reporter Ariel Helwani served as the ringside reporter. The full main card was offered on DAZN subscription to ensure accessibility to fans worldwide.
For more information, follow on Twitter via @JakePaul, @MostVPromotions, and @DAZNBoxing or on Instagram via @JakePaul, @MostValuablePromotions, and @DAZNBoxing.
About Most Valuable Promotions (MVP)
Most Valuable Promotions was founded by Jake Paul and Nakisa Bidarian in 2021. With the mission to provide more creative control to fighters, MVP works to identify, grow, and maximize return for its own events and talent partners. One year into its inception, MVP was nominated as one of the prestigious Sports Breakthroughs of the Year in 2022 by Sports Business Journal. MVP have produced Jake Paul’s last five global pay-per-view events, including the recent Paul vs. Diaz match. The promotion company also signed one of the most decorated Hispanic athletes of all time, Amanda Serrano in its first year. Serrano and MVP made history in April of 2022 when Serrano went head to head with Katie Taylor, marking the first female fight to headline at Madison Square Garden, recently earning a nomination for Event of The Year by Sports Business Journal. Co-founder Nakisa Bidarian was an executive producer of the historic Triller Presents Mike Tyson v. Roy Jones Jr., which was the 8th most bought pay-per-view event in history.
About DAZN
DAZN is a leading digital sports platform in Italy, Spain, Germany, Belgium, Portugal, Japan, Canada, US and the UK. Its wide range of exclusive content includes top-flight football from the world’s most popular competitions – Bundesliga, English Premier League, J.League, LaLiga, Serie A, and the UEFA Champions League, in addition to the biggest sports from around the world - Formula 1, NFL, NBA, MotoGP and the UFC.
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