Jake Paul targets Darren Till for boxing comeback after jaw surgery recovery

Jake Paul’s team is in active discussions with former UFC welterweight Darren Till as a potential opponent for Paul’s return to boxing, Most Valuable Promotions co-founder Nakisa Bidarian confirmed to The Sun. No agreement has been finalised, and the timeline for the fight remains uncertain.

Till was one of several names Paul floated publicly after announcing his comeback earlier this month. Bidarian confirmed the Liverpool native is firmly in the frame. “Darren Till is definitely one of the names that Jake put out there on his list,” Bidarian said. “He’s definitely one of the names that we’ve been speaking to.”

The pace of negotiations will determine whether the fight happens in 2025 or gets pushed to early 2027. Bidarian said distribution arrangements are a key factor alongside finalising an opponent. “If it takes us another three, four, five weeks to figure this out, there’s no fighting this year. It’s probably early next year. If we figure it out in the next 24 hours, we’ll hopefully get a fight in this year. But I can’t tell you today if it’s one or the other. But we’re trying our best to get it done.”

Paul has been out of action since suffering a sixth-round knockout loss to Anthony Joshua in December 2025, a defeat in which he broke his jaw. He underwent surgery shortly after and required a second procedure in February. Bidarian announced earlier this month that Paul had been medically cleared to return to the ring.

Till, released by the UFC in 2023, has kept busy across combat sports since leaving the promotion. He won three consecutive boxing bouts under the Misfits banner, including a victory over former UFC champion Luke Rockhold, before signing a multi-fight deal with Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship in April. His most recent outing was a unanimous decision win over Yoel Romero at BKFC 94 in September.