YouTube boxing sensation Jake Paul is slated to square off against former middleweight champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. on June 28, 2025, at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Despite fighting a professional boxer, ‘The Problem Child’ can’t seem to gain respect from the public he is aiming to entertain. But now, things have gotten worse! 

Ahead of his clash next month, Paul’s sparring footage with a former light heavyweight world title challenger has surfaced on social media. Instead of applause for his gutsy training choice, the internet did what it does best: roast him. Critics swarmed the clip like sharks to blood, claiming the sparring partner was treating Jake more like a dance partner than an opponent.

Who is Jake Paul sparring with?

Earlier today, 28-year-old Jake Paul gave his Instagram followers a sneak peek into his training grind—and he didn’t hold back. His story featured a mash-up of shadowboxing, sparring, and good ol’ strength training. But it was the sparring clip that really stirred the pot.

Top Boxing News wasted no time and reposted the footage, throwing some extra shine on it. Their caption? “Jake Paul has been getting work in with former Light Heavyweight World Title Challenger Steve Geffrard ahead of his fight against Julio Cesar Chavez Jr next month.”

In the short clip, Jake is seen letting his hands fly, throwing a couple of combos while Geffrard takes a step or two back, staying composed behind his guard. Nothing too wild, but just enough to spark the internet’s curiosity.

Now, let’s talk about Geffrard. The 21-3 pro hasn’t fought since March 2023.  In January 2022, he challenged Joe Smith Jr. for the WBO light heavyweight title—and got stopped in the ninth round. Still, he’s no slouch. 

Just last year, Geffrard spoke to The Sun and gave three solid reasons why he believes Jake Paul could actually become a world champion. “I think he has like three things about him that can really help him go far,” Geffrard said.
“One: his work ethic—he’s got a great one. Two: he’s got the resources to get the best trainers, best sparring, best strength and conditioning. And three: he has access to physio guys around the clock. That’s huge for longevity. Plus, he can fight whenever he wants. Some world champions don’t even have that luxury.”

Pretty glowing praise, right? But not everyone on Instagram was buying it. Let’s just say the reaction to the clip was lukewarm at best. 

Everyone wants to know the same thing

Some fans shrugged. Others rolled their eyes. And a few simply dropped laughing emojis in the comments as they poked fun at the same thing. This user got straight to the point. “Sooo…in this clip, his sparring partner wasn’t allowed to throw back??” the user asked. It’s possible that Paul intended to share a highlight from the sparring session. 

The next user started throwing accusations around. “He was paid to take it easy on Jake for sure and just let Jake work 😂,” the user commented. While it’s possible, there’s no evidence that it’s the case. It’s also possible that Paul dominated the rest of the sparring session, but didn’t share the entire clip. 

Someone else highlighted an important aspect of the clip. “Notice the other guy isn’t even punching back,” the user wrote. However, a boxer always waits for the right moment to throw back rather than attack while their opponent is also on the offensive. 

Meanwhile, this user mocked Jake Paul for failing to land one shot on his opponent. “And not a single shot was landed 😂. Useless!!!” the user wrote. However, it seemed like a light sparring session, Paul might not have intended to land the shots. 

Another user had a complaint about the clip. “Thanks for the 2 seconds of footage,” the user commented. The clip was indeed short; perhaps a longer version would have made people happier. 

That said, Jake Paul’s attempt at sharing an update from his training session seems to have backfired, as people accused his sparring partner and poked fun at him. Regardless, what do you think about the clip?