Under the backdrop of the great pyramids, Canelo Alvarez finally met the opponent he would fight next. Yet, the stare-down with Christian M’billi failed to quiet the narrative that has once again linked him with Jake Paul.

The former undisputed super middleweight titlist, whose stock has been down since the loss to Terence Crawford, is looking forward to rebuilding momentum with the fight lined up in September. But the Jake Paul issue continues to linger, especially after the recent $200 million fight offer that generated considerable buzz. During an interview, Canelo finally addressed the issue directly, taking a shot at Paul in the process.

“I realize that in every single event they need to talk about me to sell tickets and pay-per-view,” Alvarez told Ring Magazine CEO Rick Reeno. “Every fight there are other fights there, and they always talk about Canelo, Canelo, and this, and I want to fight Canelo, and because they don’t, they don’t sell tickets. They don’t sell pay-per-views.”

“They need to, they need to mention my name, and I think Jake Paul doesn’t sell so many tickets for the fight he has with his company, or I don’t know, and that’s why he brings up that situation, the 200 million, but look, it’s fine. I just laugh. I’m not worried about anything.”

Canelo Alvarez‘s comments came in response to Jake Paul’s remarks during his first-ever Kick livestream, which drew significant attention online.

“Canelo wanted 200 million,” Paul said while discussing negotiations with the former champion live. “Canelo, I have the 200 million dollars for you. Easy money. Jake Paul versus Canelo. Let’s get it done.”

“This is what the fans have been waiting for. This is the biggest fight that can possibly be made in boxing.”

“So sign the contract, Canelo,” Paul added. “Much respect to you. Let’s make the biggest fight in boxing happen. That’s the exclusive Kick livestream. Jake Paul versus Canelo. Official, official, official. You heard it here first.”

The livestream arrived at a sensitive time for Paul, whose combat sports ambitions were already under scrutiny ahead of the Netflix event headlined by Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano.

Jake Paul’s vulnerability becomes Canelo Alvarez’s weapon

Reports surrounding Paul’s inaugural MMA event suggested the card was facing ticketing challenges, something that later gave Canelo ammunition to criticize him publicly.

On May 11, sharing a screenshot of the Ticketmaster seating map, a popular content maker wrote, “MVP Netflix MMA card still has many seats available 🤔.”

The post triggered criticism from a section of fans, who accused Jake Paul and his team of putting together a card featuring aging, out-of-prime fighters.

Both Canelo and Paul are coming off losses that significantly altered the direction of their careers. While the Mexican star is attempting to rebuild momentum following the Terence Crawford defeat, Paul faced a different reality in his bout against Anthony Joshua, which left him with a broken jaw.

Still, speculation around a Canelo-Paul fight has lingered since Paul’s victory over Mike Tyson.

Early last year, the two were close to setting up a fight before plans changed after Canelo agreed to a four-fight multi-million-dollar deal with Saudi power broker Turki Alalshikh that included, among others, the Bud Crawford fight.

“Hey guys, don’t pay attention to anything [from] this f**king YouTuber,” Canelo later said, dismissing Paul’s callout. “I just fight real fighters… no f**king around with Canelo! Come on—let’s go!”

For now, the fight remains unlikely, especially with Canelo still having two more bouts left under the Riyadh Season deal.

Meanwhile, Paul himself sounded uncertain about the matchup when he spoke about his future with Ariel Helwani.

But as long as Paul keeps invoking Canelo’s name, and Canelo keeps responding, speculation surrounding the matchup is unlikely to disappear.