KSI vs Logan Paul II

Date	November 9, 2019
Venue	Staples Center, Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Tale of the tape
Boxer KSI Logan Paul Nickname The Nightmare The Maverick Hometown Watford, England Westlake, Ohio, U.S. Pre-fight record 0–0 0–0 Age 26 24 Height 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)[1] 6 ft 2 in (187 cm) Weight 193.2 lb (87.6 kg) 199.4 lb (90.4 kg) Style Orthodox Orthodox
Result
KSI defeated Paul via Split decision (56–55, 57–54, 55–56)[2]

KSI vs. Logan Paul II was a cruiserweight professional boxing match contested between English YouTuber KSI and American YouTuber Logan Paul.^[3][4] The bout was held on November 9, 2019, at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. KSI defeated Paul via split decision, with two judges scoring the bout 56–55 and 57–54 in favour of KSI, and a third judge scoring the fight 56–55 in favour of Paul.^[2]

On the undercard, Billy Joe Saunders successfully defended the WBO super middleweight title against Marcelo Coceres, and Devin Haney was also successful in his defence of the WBC lightweight title against Alfredo Santiago. The decision to have two world-title bouts on the undercard, beneath the two YouTubers, was criticised, with some going as far as describing the event as an 'insult' to boxing. However, a number of figures within the sport, including professional boxers, were receptive to the event and highlighted the professionalism of Paul and KSI – both of whom received coaching from previous world champion coaches and boxers – as well as their intention to bring a new audience to the sport of boxing. The fight sold 2 million PPV buys.^[5]

Background and build-up

KSI (left) and Logan Paul (right) both made their professional debuts on the night of the bout.

After the successful first fight against Paul, KSI requested for the second fight to be postponed until May 2019. Citing the difference in time-zones and the potential for the fight to be too late for some UK viewers, KSI said he would prefer the bout to take place in New York City.^[6] On August 28, 2018, it was announced that the fight would take place in May 2019 in an undetermined United States venue, provided neither KSI nor Paul opted out, though a date in May was never agreed.^[4][7][8] On September 3, 2019, KSI and Paul announced via Instagram that the fight would take place on November 9, 2019 at the Staples Center, Los Angeles and that it would be a professional bout, with no head guards—unlike the previous bout. The announcement confirmed that the fight would be promoted by Eddie Hearn's Matchroom Boxing.^[9]

Fight summary

The weigh-in took place at 1 pm PST on 8 November at the Xbox Plaza in Los Angeles.^[14] Paul stepped on the scales first, weighing in at 199.4lbs, just under the 200lbs cruiserweight limit, while KSI weighed in at 193.4lbs, just over 6lbs lighter, before the pair shared a brief head to head.^[15] Paul entered the ring first, sporting a red-white-and-blue robe and shorts and accompanied by his brother, Jake Paul, and musician Justin Bieber; KSI then entered the arena donning a red-and-black robe, shorts and mask, as American rappers Rick Ross and Lil Baby, and British singer and producer S-X performed KSI's newly released song, titled "Down Like That", on which they feature.^[16][17] After they entered, God Save the Queen and The Star-Spangled Banner were performed by Brian King Joseph and Nova Miller, respectively.

Referee Jack Reiss (far left), Paul (red, white and blue shorts) and KSI (red and black shorts) in the ring during the fight

The first three rounds were controlled by KSI, who offloaded more punches and appeared the aggressor, while Paul employed a more cautious approach, throwing more tentative jabs. On the back foot after the first two rounds, Paul slipped to the canvas twice in the third round, before KSI landed an overhand right behind Paul's ear – enough to send Paul to the canvas – but no knockdown was called by the referee. A chaotic fourth round saw Paul land a clean uppercut on KSI, but for the second uppercut which followed Paul had his other arm around the back of KSI's head. The illegal blow was enough to send the Briton falling to the canvas. On KSI's way down, Paul broke KSI's fall and offloaded a further illegal punch to the back of his head, then hit him once more when he reached the canvas. What was originally unanimously scored as a 10–8 round in favour of Paul for scoring a knockdown was negated by a two-point deduction from Paul's card for the illegal back-of-the-head blows. As well as deducting Paul points, the referee allowed KSI time to regain his composure before resuming the fight. The fifth round was a closer contest, with Paul landing the more meaningful jabs while KSI stayed out of any trouble. The sixth and final round matched the frantic pace of the first as both fighters swung wildly in a last attempt to snatch victory, but neither could land a decisive knockout blow.^[17][18]

After six rounds, the fight resulted in a split decision victory for KSI, with two judges scoring the bout 57–54 and 56–55 in favour of KSI, and a third scoring it 56–55 in favour of Paul.^[2] After the split decision victory, Paul and KSI shook hands and shared an embrace after the fight, with both paying respect to one another, though Paul stated his intention to contest the commission for his point deduction for his illegal punches, stating that he does not dispute what happened but thought he deserved only a warning.^[19] Paul did indeed appeal the decision, but the appeal was denied in early December 2019.^[20] When asked about a possible rematch, Paul expressed his support for the idea, but KSI rejected any prospect of a third fight against Paul, saying "It's done ... I'm on to the next thing".^[18][21]

Fight card

^Note 1 KSI's professional debut
^Note 2 Paul's professional debut
^Note 3 For WBO super middleweight title
^Note 4 For WBC lightweight title
^Note 5 Brueckner's professional debut
^Note 6 Smith's professional debut

Fight details

References