Canelo Alvarez and Jake Paul are in the process of finalizing a deal for a May 3 cruiserweight fight at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, sources told ESPN on Thursday.
The fight will be contested at the cruiserweight limit of 200 pounds, sources said, and is expected to be streamed on Netflix.
Alvarez, boxing's top star, is the unified champion at 168 pounds and is a former 175-pound champion. Paul, a social-media-star-turned-boxer, has yet to face a world-class boxer and is now prepared to do so at the highest level.
Paul, 28, is one of boxing's top attractions despite his novice skill level. His November fight with the 58-year-old Mike Tyson, which Paul won via eight-round decision, peaked at a staggering 64 million concurrent streams on Netflix.
That event was staged at the home of the Dallas Cowboys to the tune of a $18.1 million gate.
This development of a fight with Paul comes days after ESPN reported that Alvarez and Terence Crawford were finalizing a deal for a September bout at 168 pounds at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. Mexico's Alvarez typically fights twice a year on Cinco De Mayo Weekend and Mexican Independence Weekend in September.
It's possible Alvarez's decision to fight Paul will jeopardize the agreement in place to fight Crawford in a Riyadh Season event on Mexican Independence Day Weekend, sources said.
"When I'm done with boxing [at the top level)], why not?" Alvarez told The Full Send Podcast in November when asked about the possibility of fighting Paul. "Yes, maybe. I think it's good because it attracts fans who don't normally watch boxing. They know Jake Paul, but they don't know anything about boxing."
