MF & DAZN: X Series 17 was an MF–professional boxing event which featured
Danny Aarons vs Danny Simpson, a middleweight exhibition match contested between English YouTuber Danny Aarons and former professional
football player Danny Simpson. The event took place on 31 August 2025 at the
3Arena in
Dublin, Ireland. The bout ended in a split draw. The number of
pay-per-view buys was not disclosed. Originally, English
internet personality KSI was scheduled to return to the ring and face American influencer Slim Albaher and American
mixed martial artist Anthony Taylor in an
outnumbered tag team match. The bout was cancelled due to an injury KSI sustained and was replaced with a special two-part concert featuring
KSI, at the start and end of the main card, with guest experiences by
S-X and
Trippie Redd.
Background On 2 June 2024,
KSI confirmed on
Twitter his return to ring for August 2024 after a back-and-forth with
Jake Paul. Paul then leaked supposedly that KSI's opponent would be former
unified light welterweight champion
Amir Khan, and offered to fight Khan in February 2025 if he emerged victorious. Khan then responded to Paul seamlessly confirming his next bout against KSI. On 4 June, Khan confirmed he's deep in negotiations to face KSI next. On 8 June however, KSI uploaded a
YouTube confirming the bout with Khan will not happen in August and instead later on in the year. KSI then challenged Slim Albaher and
Anthony Taylor to a 2 vs 1 outnumbered tag team match, giving them 24 hours to accept. Within an hour, both Albaher and Taylor accepted on Twitter. On 30 June, the bout was officially announced between KSI, Albaher, and Taylor, along with a launch press conference at the Hilton London Wembley in
London, England. However, fans began to speculate if the bout had been cancelled following KSI deleting the bout announcement across his social media. Albaher accused KSI of "ducking" their bout, stating he was the one who withdrew. On 1 August, KSI confirmed his withdrawal in a Twitter post due to an injury sustained.
Card Broadcast The event was broadcast on
pay-per-view on
DAZN worldwide at £19.99 in Ireland and the UK while at $39.99 for the US. The event was broadcast on
YouTube in limited languages. == MF & DAZN: X Series 18 – Stake Pro Tournament Card ==