Jake Paul is keen to make a splash when he makes his eventual debut inside the PFL smart cage after signing with the MMA promotion last year.
YouTuber-turned-boxer Paul is currently in camp for a massive crossover fight with legendary heavyweight champion Mike Tyson later this year. But he has also committed to a big-money fight in the cage for the PFL at some point in the future.
And he wants to go big for his first outing under the promotion, offering $10million to either Nate Diaz or Jorge Masvidal for them to face him in the cage. Diaz is completely free to fight wherever he chooses, but Masvidal’s retirement last year came before the end of his UFC contract, so he would not be able to accept.
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Jake Paul to make MMA debut after fighting Mike Tyson this summer
After years of boxing as a professional on what he claims is a route to a world title, Paul is currently on a brief detour for a bout with Tyson on July 20. It is unclear whether or not the fight will be a full professional contest, or an exhibition similar to the heavyweight’s 2020 meeting with Roy Jones Jr.
‘Iron Mike’ will be 58-years-old when he faces Paul at the AT&T Stadium in Texas, and it is expected that he won’t be cleared for a full professional contest. His last outing against Jones in November 2020 was a rigidly ruled exhibition where no winner was declared.
Paul is 9-1 as a professional, and makes the move up to heavyweight in order to take on Tyson, whose last full fight was in June of 2005. That time, he was stopped on his stool by Kevin McBride, and opted to hang up his gloves altogether.
Jake Paul has history with a number of legendary MMA fighters
During Paul’s run in the boxing ring, he has faced the likes of Ben Askren, Tyron Woodley, Anderson Silva and Diaz. He stopped Askren and Woodley, but despite flooring Silva and Diaz was unable to stop either man when they met.
He has also had run-ins with the likes of Daniel Cormier and Kamaru Usman, but both were tied to the UFC and unable to face him in the boxing ring. While feuding with some of MMA’s biggest names, he also developed a rivalry with UFC president Dana White.
However, in recent times he has opted to move away from his feud with the sport and focus on boxing. But after signing his deal with PFL, he is obligated to have a fight in the cage, which could be against a major name such as Diaz.
Speaking on his podcast BS with Jake Paul, he called out both men by saying: “I am being so serious when I say that I want to fight them in MMA. Either Masvidal or Diaz, in the PFL, $10million offer for either one of those guys.
“Again, they will literally hide behind the fact… Masvidal: ‘You can’t even box. What the f*** are you going to do coming over to MMA, bro? I’m f***ing from Miami, Florida, bro! F*** you, don’t disrespect me.’ F***ing bird brain, that’s what he hides behind.
“Same with Paddy [Pimblett], Sean Strickland, all of these guys hide behind these crazy things. Still, none of them have shown up to the table to talk any business about anything to make anything actually happen for a real fight, a real spar, whatever it is. So, the offer still stands there. I want either one of those guys in MMA.”
UFC legends Henry Cejudo and Kamaru Usman back Jack Paul in Nate Diaz callout
Paul appears to have at least a small degree of support from two icons of the octagon in Kamaru Usman and Henry Cejudo. While speaking on their podcast Pound 4 Pound the pair noted that he would need a lot more work than simply taking kicks, but did note that he has a very high level of boxing.
“That $10million shows that dude is doing something right,” Cejudo told Usman. “We continue to keep talking about him, he’s fighting legends like Mike Tyson and Anderson Silva and yeah they’re not in their prime but he’s an entertainer who has been able to cash in and he’s making a whole lot of money.
“I personally like it and we’ve got to remember that these guys [Jake and his brother Logan Paul] are from Ohio and they did wrestle all four years in high school. I mean, with the hands and what-not I think these guys know what they’re doing. At this point, call me crazy, but I wouldn’t count Jake Paul out, I really wouldn’t.
“In mixed martial arts if he has the hands and he has the wrestling base already he just has to touch a lot of that up and understand the distance a little bit differently. He’d need the ability to maybe take some kicks if he fights Jorge but you offer me that much, I’m taking the damn fight.”
Usman was slightly more pragmatic, noting that Paul “definitely needs to polish a little more than just some wrestling and taking kicks.” “Obviously there’s a lot that goes into MMA, the intricacies of submission grappling, cage work, using the cage to get up and defend, there’s a lot that goes into it.”
However, he admitted that there is a chance of a Paul upset, adding: “You’re not far-fetched. I wouldn’t say it’s a wash that he has no chance in there. Everybody has a chance and the world is upside down for me right now with all these fights that are taking place. So it’s not far-fetched, it could happen potentially.”