Jake Paul Vs. Anderson Silva: Odds, Records, Prediction

Jake Paul is fighting what should be the toughest opponent of his young boxing career. Anderson Silva is trying to do what other fellow former MMA stars couldn’t and actually beat the man who is still best known for being a YouTube star. Here’s everything you need to know about Jake Paul vs. Anderson Silva, including the odds, their records and a prediction on who will win.

Though Paul has brutally knocked out former UFC standouts Tyron Woodley and Ben Askren, Silva is an even bigger name. And he’s a better combat fighter with actual boxing experience. That’s why, for a time, he was the betting favorite, despite the fact Silva is 47 years and despite the fact Paul has dramatically improved every time he’s stepped into the ring.

“The energy involved in this fight is so amazing,” Silva said. “A lot of people think about, ‘Anderson you’re crazy, why do you do that?’ You know what, that’s a good challenge for me.”

Although Silva is approaching 50, he surprised many observers 16 months ago when he beat the heavily favored Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. Yes, Chavez, a former world titlist, has become a punching bag (and a punchline) at this point in his career, either because his skills have so severely diminished or because he simply doesn’t care at this point to improve those skills. But still, the fact Silva beat Chavez by split decision was fairly astounding.

“I don’t believe it,” Silva said after the fight. “Canelo, come talk to me. I’m so happy.”

Instead of getting Canelo Alvarez in the ring, though, Silva will have to settle for Paul, the boxing neophyte who has shown lately that he legitimately has boxing skills. He’s only boxed for 18 professional rounds, but Paul has changed the mind of many observers who first believed he was a joke and now have come to see that he might have a future in the sport.

“I signed up for the hardest sport in the world, and I love it,” Paul said. “That’s what I’m built for, and I love a challenge. I grew up idolizing (Silva). For me, this is even surreal that I’m even sitting here. I need to take a moment to be like, ‘Is this real with all the cameras?’ I was sitting on a couch watching this guy as a kid and here we are . . . I respect this man, I’m still going to knock him out, but respectfully knock him out.”

Silva will present Paul with some challenges. He’s the first left-hander that Paul will have faced, and as far as talent is concerned, Silva is one of the best to ever compete in UFC. Plus, you know, Silva is coming off a win against a former world titlist.

“This is it. This is a make-or-break moment,” Paul said. “I know I have someone who just beat a world champion of boxing right in front of me.”

Still, Paul said, “It won’t go more than five.”

Either way, these guys seem to like each other.

Here’s more info on the Jake Paul vs. Anderson Silva showdown that U.S. viewers can watch Saturday on Showtime PPV for $59.99 beginning at 9 p.m. ET.

Jake Paul vs. Anderson Silva odds

At one point, when this fight was first announced, Anderson Silva was the betting favorite. But in the last week or so, more and more of the money has come in on Paul, and as of this writing, he’s a -250 favorite (bet $250 to win $100) while Silva is the +205 underdog (win $205 on a $100 wager). Last week, Paul was -135 and Silva was +105, and in early September, Silva was the -140 favorite with Paul at +100. That should show you just popular Paul has become among bettors. Unless you can find Paul at somewhere in the -150 neighborhood, I probably wouldn’t bother with his money line. Instead, I’d go with Paul to win by KO/TKO at +175. For what it’s worth, a Silva win by decision pays off at 8/1.

If you were looking for a fun parlay for this weekend’s action of boxing (and this is only for entertainment purposes), I might take Paul to beat Silva at -250, Vasiliy Lomachenko to stop Jamaine Ortiz at -125 and William Zepeda to beat JoJo Diaz at -190. If all of those hit, you’d win $285 on a $100 bet. For what it’s worth, I nailed my hypothetical parlay from two weeks ago.

Jake Paul vs. Anderson Silva records

Paul (5-0, 4 KOs) has had one close fight—his first matchup vs. Woodley, when Paul won a split decision. Otherwise, he’s brutally knocked out every fighter he’s faced. None of his past opponents, though, have the spectacular resume of Silva.

Silva (3-1, 2 KOs) has had four professional bouts spread over the course of 24 years, but remember, he hasn’t lost a boxing match since 1998. That was to Osmar Luis Teixeira, who retired in 2014. Now, Silva is coming off his most impressive victory against Chavez, where Silva was a +440 underdog.

Jake Paul vs. Anderson Silva prediction

Two years ago, there’d be no question who you should pick. It would have been Silva. But now that Paul continues to improve (and has shown legit KO power) and now that Silva is 47, I’m swinging the other way. I’m going with Paul by stoppage in the fourth round.