Nakisa Bidarian picked December 24 as his ideal date for Jake Paul’s return. He told Jack Figg of The Sun Sport that the reason is television: everyone is home, and the sports calendar is thin. He may not have noticed the other reason. December 24 is Darren Till’s birthday. Till was born on Christmas Eve 1992, so if this gets signed in time, the Liverpool man turns 34 on fight night. He would be standing across from someone he has been trying to punch since 2024.
The Most Valuable Promotions co-founder confirmed Till is in the mix. “Darren Till is definitely one of the names that Jake put out there on his list,” Bidarian said, adding that Till is someone they have been speaking to. The catch is the clock. Bidarian said that if they close it within a day or so, a 2026 date is realistic. If it drags three, four or five weeks, Paul probably fights early next year.
How we got here
This fight exists because the Tommy Fury rematch fell apart again. Paul’s team wanted Fury in December 2026 with $10 million on the table. John Fury, Tommy’s father and manager, said December wasn’t an option and pushed for February or March of 2027. Paul responded by posting on X that a fighter “almost 30” shouldn’t have his dad calling the shots. Bloody Elbow reported that Paul has since declared the rematch dead, saying the ship has sailed.
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Then Paul published a 15-man list of opponents he wants before he retires. It includes Francis Ngannou, Tom Aspinall, Sean Strickland and Till. Of those names, Till is the easiest to get into a ring by Christmas. He has been chasing this fight publicly since he beat Mohammad Mutie in an exhibition in 2024. He offered himself as a replacement when Mike Tyson’s fight with Paul was first postponed that year. Earlier this month he said he was waiting on Paul to send the contract. Strickland, by comparison, holds the UFC middleweight title. Derek Brunson told Bloody Elbow that Strickland is on fight two of a 10-fight deal. Nobody’s getting him out of that by December.
Till still has one fight left on his BKFC contract. Bloody Elbow’s read is that the promotion would likely let him go box elsewhere. I agree, mostly because BKFC benefits from having its fighter in a Jake Paul main event.
Paul’s problem is the jaw
Paul last fought in December 2025 at heavyweight against Anthony Joshua. Joshua ended it in Round 6 with a right hand that broke Paul’s jaw in multiple places. That was the second loss of Paul’s pro career, after the 2023 split decision against Fury. He has spent the time since recovering.
My read: the biggest technical question in any first fight back from a broken jaw is psychological, and it shows up in the pocket. Does Paul still exchange at mid-range, or does he start leaning out and resetting early when the other guy lets his hands go? Joshua was the biggest puncher he has ever stood in front of. Till won’t hit like Joshua. But Till only needs to make Paul hesitate once to start winning rounds.
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Paul’s best résumé wins, Nate Diaz and Anderson Silva, came against MMA veterans moving over to boxing. Till fits that profile on paper. In practice he is a different animal. He is younger, he is busier, and he has already done most of his rule-set conversion.
Till’s case in boxing
Till started Muay Thai at 12 and turned pro at 15, so striking is his native language. Look at how he lost in the UFC. Tyron Woodley caught him in a D’Arce choke in Round 2 at UFC 228 on September 8, 2018. Derek Brunson finished him with a rear-naked choke in Round 3 in September 2021. Jorge Masvidal knocked him out in Round 2 in 2019, so his chin hasn’t been perfect. But two of his worst nights came on the mat, and boxing removes the mat entirely.
He lost kicks, knees and elbows in the move, and he kept winning anyway. Sources count five straight wins across exhibition, pro boxing and bare-knuckle since he left the UFC. That run includes a knockout of Luke Rockhold and a BKFC 94 win over Yoel Romero. He also holds the MFB bridgerweight title, which tells you he has been fighting far north of the 170 he used to cut to.
That part matters to me more than people think. Till missed weight against Jessin Ayari in 2017 by five pounds. He missed again against Stephen Thompson in 2018 by 3.5 pounds and forfeited 30 percent of his purse. A Till who walks in near his natural size and skips the brutal cut should have a full gas tank in the late rounds. A Till asked to shrink for a contract weight is a different conversation. Whatever number ends up in this deal, read it before you read anything else.
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How I see the exchanges
The early rounds are about the jab and the first clean right hand. Till has been active all year, and Paul hasn’t thrown a punch in anger in roughly 12 months. My read is that Till’s best path is to pressure early and make Paul prove the jaw holds. Paul’s best path is to use his boxing reps, keep it long, and drag Till into rounds where his patience gets tested. Till has historically been the more emotional fighter, and he has talked himself into this fight for two years. That kind of motivation can make a guy overcommit in Round 1.
If it gets signed, I’m picking Till. I think the activity gap and the layoff are too much for a first fight back from that kind of injury. I wouldn’t bet the house on it, because Paul has made a career out of being underrated against MMA guys.
What it means
There is no division here in the normal sense. There is a calendar. Bidarian said Christmas Day is crowded with the NBA and NFL, and that Amazon has its first Christmas Eve NFL game this year. “I think Christmas Eve is better than Christmas Day, at the moment,” he said. The longer this sits, the more Till’s other option looks real. Brunson returns at BKFC in Myrtle Beach on November 20, and Bloody Elbow reported he’s open to a Till rematch in bare-knuckle. If MVP can’t close by mid-November, don’t be surprised when Till’s phone rings from that direction instead.
