The “Euphoria” Season 2 finale made it clear that Ashtray knows how to fight. So does the 17-year-old who plays him.
Javon “Wanna” Walton has signed with Most Valuable Promotions, the boxing promotion company co-founded by Jake Paul and Nakisa Bidarian. MVP will work with Walton on brand building, content creation and event marketing as he finishes his amateur career, with his professional debut set for 2024. His first appearance with MVP will take place on Aug. 2 in Dallas, where he will participate in the open workouts as part of the Jake Paul vs. Nate Diaz fight week.
Along with his role in “Euphoria,” Walton is known for playing Stan in “The Umbrella Academy” on Netflix, with other credits including Amazon Prime Video’s “Utopia” and the upcoming Hulu series “Under the Bridge.” In a 2022 interview with PvNew, he said that it was his boxing career that led him to acting — after an appearance on Steve Harvey’s talk show where he discussed boxing, he was scouted by legendary casting director Jennifer Venditti, who was then working on “Euphoria.”
Walton began boxing at age four. Fighting at 125 pounds, he is a multi-time junior regional champion in the state of Georgia and two-time Junior Olympic national silver medalist. Additionally, he was a USA Gymnastics-ranked elite rising star and was one of seven southeast gymnasts to join their Future Star program at age eight. He went on to compete at the elite level in trampoline and floor tumbling, finishing with top three in the nation with a silver medal in all-round in 2016. Walton is the first and only athlete in the state of Georgia to hold the youth gymnastics all-around and USA Boxing/Silver Gloves boxing champion state titles simultaneously.
He is also the youngest-ever athlete to sign with Nike’s Jordan brand, with other partnerships including Drake’s OVO, Gap, Venmo, Essentia Water and PSD Underwear.
“I’ve been training so hard and working for the majority of my life for this moment,” Walton said. “MVP feels like family and that’s very important to me. I know they can help me reach my goals in professional boxing and do it in a way that feels special to me.”
“We see this as an incredible opportunity to make a big impact on Wanna’s entrance into professional boxing. The way Nakisa and Jake have been able to disrupt the boxing promotion business in such a considerably short period of time is inspiring. We’re honored to be MVP’s youngest signee,” said Walton’s coach and father, DJ Walton
“Wanna Walton is uniquely positioned to become the face of combat sports over the next decade,” said Bidarian and Paul. “With an unmatched blend of skills and pedigree, strong values, and a large highly engaged fan base before turning pro, he embodies a true superstar in the making. We’re honored to welcome Wanna into our family of exceptional athletes and under MVP, he will be headlining global pay-per-view events in no time. MVP is leading a new era of boxing and Wanna is the future. We can’t wait to see his greatness unfold.”
