A big-money Jake Paul fight does not appeal to Dmitry Bivol, but he praised the American for his success.
The WBA light heavyweight champion fought most recently in November when he faced Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez, and now faces a lengthy wait as either Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez recovers to full fitness, or unified compatriot Artur Beterbiev makes himself available earlier than expected in 2023.
Speaking on The DAZN Boxing Show about his recent success and his future plans, Bivol said that instead of a high-profile crossover event against Paul, he would much prefer a similar payday against a true fighter.
“I hope they will send me a big money fight with another boxer,” he said, but continued: “I respect him. He’s big, he’s strong, I’m scared of him.
“I respect him, he was a blogger, he became a boxer. He earned some money, he made a show.
“But it’s not 100% sport, it’s 50-50. I want to be famous in the sport, I don’t want to be famous because I talk dirty about someone, or I bought some blogger. I want to beat real good boxers.”