Who Is Salt Papi?

One of the most exciting fighters who has built an organic following is someone most people don’t know by name. Meet Salt Papi, or Busta Breezie, which is supposedly his real name, and despite no amateur pedigree – Papi is something to watch for in a good way.

Salt Papi created a social media following based around applying salt to food, not unlike another internet darling, “Salt Bae,” an attractive man who ridiculously poured salt on food in ways people on the internet would use to convey emotions in different ways. These memes would then make “Salt Bae” a thing on the internet and something he could further monetize.

Salt Bae has used his internet fame to become the owner of overpriced restaurants. Salt Papi, the Filipino sensation who relocated to England in his teenage years, has used his internet fame to become a credible boxer.

As we laugh and belittle YouTube and social media boxing for the goofiness and the lack of respect and honor we expect to be shown to our sport, Salt Papi stands out like a piece of gold to a Northern California 49er looking to hit it rich in the hills of California. With over 4.5 million followers and more than 141 million likes across all his TikTok videos, it is clear Salt Papi knows how to manipulate people. But now the junk food lover has become a very credible fighter and the star of the odd Misfits Boxing cards on DAZN, which are becoming the future of the network seemingly more than most hardcore fight fans want to believe, as they keep putting out cards and keep getting viewership.

Weighing 210 lbs before boxing, Salt Papi took to boxing once he got a fight announced against Halal Ham, an internet comedian. Papi, in fact, saw 30 lbs fall off of his body. Salt Papi fights like a fighter who had amateur fights, but it appears he didn't.

What stands out is that he can move his body together as one unit. Often times with young fighters, the feet do one thing, the head does another thing, and the arms do something else. Papi is calm and relaxed, and his body works together in unison. This is not the trait of a celebrity boxer. This is the trait of a boxer. It almost makes me wonder if he was meant to box and somehow found his calling in life by chance.

Now don’t get me wrong, Salt Papi is at best comparable to a regional fighter or a fringe prospect, but for the typically low-level of world-class performance you see on these types of circus cards that are more so about the trash-talking and someone getting humiliated rather than seeing the most effective fighting styles. Papi might just be the guy who could emerge as someone who is respected by even hardcore fight fans.

It was time to get serious 🤷🏽‍♂️ #saltpapi #boxing pic.twitter.com/j37kDsMrzj

— Salt Papi 🧂👏🏽 (@therealsaltpapi) January 15, 2023

Appearing as a chubby Filipino fighter, he is one-by-one knockout buff models or influencers. This is something that will break the internet as most people look at muscles as the end all be all in a fight, and Papi is dispelling this myth. That was the case when Papi knocked out Josh Brueckner, a buff, blond-haired IG model who went down off one shot. Prior, Papi stopped an internet streamer Andy Warski in mere seconds after Warski taunted him prior.

Manila salt 🧂 #saltpapi #boxing @MF_DAZNXSeries @MisfitsBoxing @DAZNBoxing @HappyPunchPromo pic.twitter.com/gwAN8SbISo

— Salt Papi 🧂👏🏽 (@therealsaltpapi) January 15, 2023

It appears it isn’t a matter of if, more so when Salt Papi faces the big boys of celebrity boxing, such as Jake Paul and KSI. Papi has turned his whole life into boxing; his social media platform is now that empowerment, self-help-type stuff for his boxing career. A lot of motivational, inspirational stuff, as well as some behind-the-scenes footage of fight week.

I always wondered if someone would emerge out of the YouTube/Misfits pack, and it happened.  Out of the blue, we have Salt Papi, and more strangely, it is more than likely he will make a big fight before some of the fighters in the top ten of the pound-for-pound will.  If that isn’t boxing in 2023, then I don’t know what is.