Jake Paul will continue to fight, whether it’s on Netflix or elsewhere.
That’s the word coming from Most Valuable Promotions co-founder and CEO Nakisa Bidarian, who came out this morning (Thu. Oct. 22nd) to respond to rumors that MVP’s time working with Netflix was up.
“Jake Paul update: We are actively negotiating with 4 potential opponents for Jake’s return to boxing in late 2026/ early 2027,” Bidarian wrote on X (formerly Twitter). “Based on the opponent we will determine the location and distribution.”
Paul recently shared a new hitlist of opponents he wants to face which includes Canelo Alvarez, Francis Ngannou, and Conor McGregor. The only one of those three who seems interested in fighting Jake is Ngannou, who has struggled to prove he’s a legitimate draw.
MVP has worked with Netflix four times in the past, starting their relationship out with Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson back in November 2024, then doing Katie Taylor vs. Amanda Serrano 3 with the network. Jake Paul vs. Anthony Joshua and MVP MMA’s Ronda Rousey vs. Gina Carano followed.
MVP gave Netflix big numbers and Netflix gave MVP big checks. The relationship was looking good … right up until Netflix fired half its execs after quarterly reports showed slowing growth that set off alarms amongst investors. Now a lot of the top people that MVP worked with are gone, and reports from insiders are saying MVP’s access to the network is in jeopardy.
On the other side of the coin, other reports say Netflix intends to expand its sports offerings and special one-off events. New hires at the top of Netflix’s content pipeline are just days into their jobs, so it’s a bit early to say one way or another what anyone will do.
The upstart combat sports promotion certainly didn’t put all its eggs into the Netflix basket. They’ve done events with DAZN, with ESPN, and with Sky Sports. Bidarian is a former UFC executive that oversaw the sale of the promotion to IMG/Endeavor back in 2016. Out of all the suits in the sport talking a big game, he’s the one actually delivering these days.
But it would certainly be easier to pull off whatever MVP plans with Jake Paul and their new MMA division with Netflix on their roster of potential partners.
