Jake Paul reveals true toll of Anthony Joshua knockout and shares updated return timeline

‘The Problem Child’ shared last month that he needed a second surgery on his jaw after rushing back too soon from his initial injury.

That did not stop him from calling out Francis Ngannou at Most Valuable Promotions’ press conference, ahead of their first MMA event set for May 16.

Speaking to the media, Paul revealed that his recovery could delay his return to boxing until early 2027.

He stated (via MMA Junkie): “I got my second surgery recently so the doctors said four, five, six months to even be able to spar to see how the bone is healing. So that puts us like maybe late this year, early next year.”

Following his departure from PFL earlier this year, Paul’s promotion is set to host an MMA event on Netflix in May. That has opened up another opportunity for him to test himself in a new format.

When asked if MMA still held appeal for him, his response was emphatic: “Yeah, 100%.”

The 29-year-old added: “I’ve always liked to challenge myself and be a disruptor and do things that people wouldn’t expect me to do… I would be down and I tried very, very hard multiple times with Nate Diaz to make that happen. I believe that’s the perfect fight for me in MMA so I would still like to make that happen.”

Nakisa Bidarian backed him up too. The MVP co-founder added that they had tried getting the fight booked during their time with PFL and still feel it is something worth pursuing.