JAKE PAUL has slammed Nate Diaz after the UFC star took aim at Ben Askren for praising the YouTuber’s boxing skills.
The 24-year-old knocked out the former MMA ace in the first round in April to record his third consecutive victory inside the squared circle.
It was expected to be the ex-Disney actor’s hardest fight since turning professional, but he silenced his critics in emphatic fashion.
Paul then outpointed former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley on a split decision in August.
And Askren, 37, has admitted he was surprised by Paul’s qualities during his appearance on Lex Freidman’s podcast.
He said: “So the thing I said when I went in to fight him [Jake Paul] is maybe he’s good or maybe he’s not. We really have no idea to this point, you know
“I knew that Tyron was a lot better in boxing than I was.
“And so I thought that there is a good likelihood that Tyron beats him up but there is a chance that Jake is kind of good at this.
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“I think what played out is he’s kind of good at it.
“And if you saw the way I saw it, he was still impressive in his showing and he has obviously put a lot of time into it. So, he’s not bad, I’ll say that much.”
UFC welterweight Diaz hit out at Askren over his views, as he tweeted: “Coming from a retired wrestler who can’t fight or box.”
Paul then chimed in, as he compared Diaz’s 13 defeats inside the octagon to Askren’s two.
He remarked: “You have six times as many losses as Ben Askren. Let that sink in.”
Diaz then fired back: “He sucks Jake. You’d get smoked n a real fight tho (sic).
“You can’t really fight boxing matches with wrestlers only. Let that sink in.”
Paul is currently preparing for his dust-up against Tommy Fury in Florida next month.
And he has vowed to embarrass the Fury family as he looks to knock out TNT.
He said: “One month to go until December 18th and a complete embarrassment of the Fury family.
“Mark your calendars now to witness history in Tampa.”
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk