Salt Papi is a name fight fans will need to know in 2023.
The 28-year-old first found fame on TikTok thanks to his comedy videos that often include him seasoning food with the same flair you’d see from controversial celebrity chef Salt Bae.
Salt Papi – real name Busta Breezie - has 4.5 million followers and more than 141 million likes across all his TikTok videos that have documented his journey into the world of boxing.
The social media star, who was born in the Philippines before moving to England as a teenager, started 2022 as a chubby junk food lover who weighed 210lbs before taking up boxing.
However, he ended the year more than 30lbs lighter and has been praised by many in the influencer boxing scene for what can only be described as an epic body transformation.
Salt Papi said on his Facebook page: “I was a fat kid growing up… I just found it really hard to lose weight."
However, after being given two months’ notice ahead of his boxing debut against comedian Halal Ham, Salt Papi got into the gym and the weight started to fall off.
He added: “I started training properly, going to the gym twice a day.
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"In the morning, I was doing a lot of boxing cardio workouts and sparring. In the evening, it was all about weightlifting just to get stronger."
By the time fight night rolled around, Salt Papi was 11lbs lighter.
However, it wasn’t his weight loss that impressed spectators, it was his surprising boxing ability.
The internet sensation dominated his opponent for three rounds as he used counters and created angles throughout the fight, unlike any other influencer.
Viddal Riley, a 7-0 professional boxer, was part of the commentary team for the fight and asserted that Salt Papi ‘has definitely been boxing for a while’ during his impressive win.
A few months later, Salt Papi fought fellow internet celebrity Andy Warski in a three-round boxing match on the undercard of KSI’s 2 Fights, 1 Night event.
After dropping another 16lbs, Salt Papi quickly floored Warski with a beautiful uppercut-hook combination that seemingly knocked his opponent out just a few seconds into the bout.
Amazingly, Warski was able to get up from the knockdown, but the referee waved off that fight that stole the show on a big boxing card.
On that occasion, Chris Eubank Jr was on commentary duty.
The man who will face Liam Smith on January 21 struggled to hide his disgust at what he was asked to give his thoughts during the early portion of the fight card.
However, this all changed when Salt Papi stepped into the ring.
Eubank Jr was seriously impressed, saying post-fight: “When I was watching him licking his lips in front of his opponent before the fight, I was like, ‘This kid’s got something.’
“It became very clear early on with the foot movement, the in-and-out, that he’s been practicing his footwork. And then he hit him with the two-piece combo and the guy went to sleep, incredible.
“If you look at him, he looks like he works a nine-to-five at a cheese factory.
“So, to see him come out there, moonwalk, dance, lick his lips and then knock a guy out, that’s box office right there.”
Salt Papi will return to the ring on Saturday night when he takes on Josh Brueckner on the undercard of KSI’s fight against late-replacement opponent Faze Temperrr.
It will be his toughest test to date – by far – as Brueckner is also 2-0 in the boxing ring and brings in the experience that comes from a six-fight career in MMA.
A win in this one would make Salt Papi one of the most credentialed influencer boxers and set him up for possible fights with KSI and Jake Paul.
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He has called out both men, who appear to be on a collision course but need opponents to face while they try to come to terms with a deal that suits everyone.
So, don’t be too surprised if Salt Papi fights one or both of them before 2023 is over.
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