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Marc Raimondi, ESPN Staff Writer
Ashton Sylve, the teen boxing prospect under Jake Paul’s promotional banner, will get the toughest test of his early career this summer.
The undefeated, 19-year-old rising star will face 34-fight veteran William Silva on Aug. 5 in Dallas on the undercard of the Jake Paul vs. Nate Diaz event, officials told ESPN on Wednesday. The fight is contracted for eight rounds at 135 pounds. Silva has just four career losses, two of them against top fighters Teofimo Lopez and Arnold Barboza Jr.
Sylve (9-0, 8 KOs), who is promoted by Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions, is coming off a unanimous decision win over Adam Kipenga on Paul’s first Most Valuable Prospects card May 26. Sylve, a Long Beach, California native, was ESPN Ringside’s 2022 Prospect of the Year and has an illustrious amateur record.
Silva (30-4, 18 KOs) has won two straight via finish after falling to Cletus Seldin in October 2021. The 36-year-old Brazil native who lives and trains in Florida has won five of his last seven fights. Silva is promoted by Reyes Boxing and Fire Fist Promotions.
“Ashton continues to impress and entertain at such a young age and will bring his unique combination of knockout power and agility to the ring on Aug. 5,” Most Valuable Promotions co-founder Nakisa Bidarian said in a statement. “This fight represents his toughest test to date against a battle tested and dangerous Silva, who has only lost to some of the best fighters in the game.”
The Paul vs. Diaz semi main event pits women’s boxing undisputed featherweight champion Amanda Serrano against Heather Hardy. Also on the undercard, longtime Diaz teammate and MMA veteran Chris Avila will face Jeremy Stephens, a longtime UFC knockout artist.