Jake Paul’s latest stunt ahead of his fight with Gervonta Davis may have taken the cake.
The Paul vs. Davis fight was already bizarre before a punch was ever thrown, but on Tuesday, the YouTuber-turned-boxer shared an AI-generated video that showed him and Davis locking lips during a staredown. The clip, which Paul captioned on X with “They can never make me hate you spanky tanky 🥹,” depicts the two fighters leaning in and kissing instead of trading blows.
Paul doubled down on Instagram, posting the same video with the caption, “Send to your lover ❤️,” along with another note: “No matter what they say I’ll always love you spanky tanky <3.”
The surreal clip quickly went viral, racking up over 1.4 million views on X in under 24 hours and garnering more than 100,000 likes on Instagram. It’s the latest in a string of odd moments surrounding the November 14 showdown at the Kaseya Center in Miami.
The fight has already drawn scrutiny due to the fighters’ massive size difference. Davis last fought at lightweight (135 pounds), while Paul last competed as heavy as cruiserweight (200 pounds). Questions about weight class, glove size, and even the fight’s status as an exhibition added to the questions before details were finalized.
While Paul’s AI clip leaned into humor, their actual face-to-face interactions have been anything but playful. At a recent Miami press conference, Paul stepped too close for Davis’ comfort during their staredown, leading Davis to shove him. Paul attempted to push back, and Davis cocked his fist, appearing ready to swing.
That’s when model and rapper Rubi Rose, who was standing between the fighters, jumped in to defuse the chaos. Her intervention prevented the scuffle from escalating into a full-on brawl, calming tensions before they boiled over.
Shortly after that face-off, a clip of Tank observing a video of Paul training and claiming he was a "decent" fighter circulated online.