Shakur Stevenson’s time with Zuffa Boxing ended before he ever stepped into a ring for it. Within a day of the news spreading, Jake Paul used it as leverage for a fight he has wanted for a long time.
“Can Jon Jones request a release like Shakur Stevenson so we can go ahead and do this Francis Ngannou vs Jon Jones fight?” Paul wrote on X on Monday, Oct. 19, tagging both men. “They already said they are never working with Francis. So let Jon fly and we can give the fans what they want. Please and thank you.”
That framing belongs to Paul. FightBook MMA reported that Stevenson exited Zuffa Boxing without a fight and announced his promotional plans. Whether the split began with a release request, as Paul’s post implies, isn’t established in that report. Paul’s line that “they” have said they’ll never work with Ngannou is his own characterization and comes with no supporting statement.
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Zuffa Boxing is still a young operation. White co-founded it in 2025 and serves as its promoter. He also runs the UFC as CEO, a title he took in 2023 when ownership was reorganized under TKO Group Holdings, and he runs Power Slap on the side. Losing a name like Stevenson with zero bouts on the books is an awkward entry on a short résumé.
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It also capped a weekend in which White spent a lot of time talking about who stays and who goes. After UFC Edmonton, he was asked about the UFC moving on from Farid Basharat, who is 16-0 and went 7-0 inside the Octagon, with six of those wins coming by decision. “If you’re 16-0 with 7 wins in the UFC and don’t get re-signed, there’s definitely a reason,” White said. Asked about Joaquin Buckley refusing to shake his hand, he deadpanned, “As soon as he lost, I told Hunter to cut him,” before adding, “I’m f*cking joking.”
For Stevenson, the next step runs through the promotional plans he announced on his way out. The FightBook MMA report doesn’t name an opponent, a venue or a date. For Paul, the pitch depends on Jones, who is under contract with a company Paul says has shut the door on Ngannou. So far the only person publicly lobbying for that fight is the man who wants to promote it.
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