MMA

JAKE PAUL has been backed to beat Tyron Woodley by Jeff Mayweather, who warned it ‘won’t mean s***’ until the YouTuber beats a real boxer. The YouTuber is 3-0 in his career and faces his biggest challenge on Sunday 29 August against ex-UFC champion Woodley.
Jake Paul fights Tyron Woodley on August 29Credit: The Mega Agency
But Paul – despite being in the infancy of his career – has drawn criticism for fighting another opponent without prior professional boxing experience.
It comes following his knockout wins over online rival ‘AnEsonGib’, ex-NBA star Nate Robinson, 37, and retired UFC welterweight Ben Askren, 36.
Trainer Mayweather, uncle to the legendary Floyd Jr, is among those calling for Paul to challenge a legitimate boxer while tipping him to beat Woodley.
He said on the The Mayweather Channel: “He ain’t f***ing building your resume when you f***ing just calling out people who don’t even box at all.
“Fight a boxer. One boxer. I think he’s (Woodley) a good opponent, but do I think he has enough time frame to actually win the fight? No, I don’t to be honest.
“I think Jake is getting better, he’s getting better with each fight and you can’t just jump into boxing and all of a sudden, just because you’re a combat sports guy, doesn’t mean that you’re gonna learn.
“I give the edge to Jake. I don’t think he’s going to dominate him and do him like he did with Askren or Nate.
“I don’t think he’s going to do that to him, but I think he’s going to win.”
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How Jake Paul and Tyron Woodley compare ahead of their boxing match

Paul, 24, is already targeting mega-fights with UFC stars such as Conor McGregor, 33, Nate Diaz, 36, and Kamaru Usman, 34.
It is a strategy Mayweather – who helped coach KSI to beat Paul’s brother Logan in 2019 – agrees is financially smart.
But he claimed wins over the likes of Woodley, who will make his boxing debut against the social media sensation, demand less praise.
He explained: “It don’t mean s***. Because, like I said, once Jake fights a fighter, then I will give him some real credit.
“Because what I think is this, if you’re going to to keep doing this – and don’t get me wrong, if I was Jake Paul, I’d probably be doing the same thing.
“Because, all he needs to do is fight names. He doesn’t have to fight a legitimate fighter at all, period. He’s still going to be paid top dollar.
“So yes, I understand it and it’s one of those things that it’s kind of good for the sport but it’s also bad for the sport.”
Floyd Mayweather’s uncle JeffCredit: Instagram @jeffmayweather
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JAKE PAUL said he is ‘exposing the UFC’ and the ‘striking capabilities’ of their fighters as he vowed to ‘finish’ Tyron Woodley. Paul faces the ex-UFC champion on Sunday, August 29 in his hometown of Cleveland.
Jake Paul knocked out retired UFC welterweight Ben AskrenCredit: Getty Images – Getty
Jake Paul fights Tyron Woodley on August 29Credit: Alamy
The YouTube star in April knocked out retired UFC welterweight Ben Askren, a renowned grappler and former training partner of Woodley’s.
Paul, 24, said: “I think I’m exposing the UFC a bit with their striking capabilities.
“He’s fought the ‘best in the world’ in the UFC, but that’s not boxing. People think they’re very similar sports, which they kind of are.
“But it’s really relating swimming to basketball. It’s two very different things. 
“Boxers are more efficient, more precise, more conservative with their energy, scoring points.
“It’s just a completely different ballgame, and a lot of people don’t really understand that.
“They just take it at face value, which is, ‘This is a fight’. It’s not that.
“He’s coming into my territory, and as crazy as it sounds, I’m a much better boxer than him – even though he’s been doing it for five times as long.”

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How Jake Paul and Tyron Woodley compare ahead of their boxing match

Paul has so far only faced limited opposition, beating online rival ‘AnEsonGib’ and ex-NBA player Nate Robinson, 37, before Askren, 36.
Woodley, 39, will provide his biggest step up to date, a former welterweight champion who made four defences from 2016-2018.
But more recently, he departed the UFC having lost four in a row, without a win in three years.
Paul has promised to put the final nail in the coffin of Woodley’s career when the American makes his boxing debut.
He said: “Yes, he’s fought Kamaru Usman. Yes, he’s fought Gilbert Burns. But that’s not Jake Paul.
“I will finish him, unlike those guys, and then people are going to come back and watch this interview and be like, ‘Holy s***, this kid is crazy.
“‘He predicted the future, and what the f*** is going on? What the f*** is in the milk in Ohio?”’
Jake Paul and Tyron Woodley have bet that loser of grudge boxing bout gets tattoo ‘I love’ and winner’s name on them More

JAKE PAUL continued his relentless pursuit of a boxing match with Conor McGregor by direct messaging the UFC superstar on Instagram.The YouTuber revealed his eagerness to take on McGregor a few days after scoring a sensational second-round KO victory over Nate Robinson on the undercard of Mike Tyson’s exhibition bout with Roy Jones Jr late last year.
Jake Paul slid into Conor McGregor’s direct messages on Instagram
Jake Paul launched a foul-mouthed tirade at Conor McGregor earlier this week
And earlier this week, the 24-year-old doubled down on his desire to box McGregor in a foul-mouthed tirade on Instagram, in which he claimed his team have sent the UFC’s poster boy a whopping £37million ($50million) offer.
McGregor refrained from responding to the x-rated call-out, in which Paul made derogatory comments about the Irishman’s fiancee, Dee Devlin.
And in another attempt to get the former two-division UFC champion’s attention Paul – whose older brother Logan recently stepped in the ring with Floyd Mayweather – sent a short and sweet direct message to The Notorious on Instagram.
Paul’s message read: “Take the fight pussy.”

After sharing his DM to McGregor, Paul launched a blistering rant at UFC president Dana White, who earlier that day revealed he was willing to let women’s bantamweight and featherweight queen Amanda Nunes fight the former Disney star.
He said: “Alright, Dana, let me try to understand your logic here: So you’re saying you don’t want me to fight Conor McGregor because he’s one of the greatest fighters in the world and I’m just like a YouTuber of whatever.
“But then, in a statement today, you say: ‘Oh, I’m thinking about just having Amanda Nunes knock him out.’ But she’s also one of the greatest.
“Dana, you seem to have this thing where you sort of hate on videogamers or YouTubers and influencers and us boxing and all this stuff.
“But then, you spend half your time hanging out with the Nelk Boys. And I know why. It’s because they have hella influence over the male audience and you know that’s gonna promote the UFC.
“And right now, baby, there’s nobody in this f***ing world who is promoting the UFC as much as me.
Tens of millions of views, number one search result on Google when you type in Conor McGregor, when you type in UFC, when you type in Dana White. So you’re not making sense here.
“Dana, I know the world doesn’t really know this because the UFC is this huge company. But we all know it’s not doing that well.
Jake Paul knocked out Nate Robinson on the undercard of Mike Tyson’s exhibition bout with Roy Jones JrCredit: AP:Associated Press
“Anyone who is involved in WME and all the public stocks and everything that went south there, we know the company is not doing well. And I’m the biggest money fight you can do unless Khabib comes out of retirement.
“So if you want the UFC to make the most amount of money, you better start to wake the f**k up and realise that Jake Paul vs Conor McGregor is going to happen at some point.”
Paul’s rant at White came shortly after he ambushed McGregor’s team-mate Dillon Danis and pelted him with water balloons.
Paul may very well be a combat sports novice, but he’s well and truly at the centre of the boxing and MMA worlds at this moment in time.
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TYRON WOODLEY has revealed his four-fight boxing plan including Jake Paul twice, Oscar De La Hoya and ‘a current guy’. The former UFC champion faces Paul on Sunday, August 29 in what will be his boxing debut.
Jake Paul fights Tyron Woodley on August 29Credit: Rex
But Woodley – who made four MMA title defences from 2016-2018 – is now eyeing a stay in the boxing business having left the UFC this year.
His fight with Paul includes a rematch clause if the YouTuber is beaten – and a bet with the loser getting ‘I love’ the winner tattooed on them.
It means Woodley expects a double header with the social media star – but then he wants to face the returning De La Hoya, 47.
He said: “I want to pay respect to the sport. I would like to fight an OG, a veteran, somebody that’s been in the sport for a long time.
“De La Hoya’s name got thrown around a little bit. To enter into somebody’s sport, I think you’ve got to do it in a respectful way.
“I think we’re fighting a seasoned veteran first, and then maybe fighting a current stud. I think that’s the way you get the respect.
“I’ll fight (Paul) probably a couple of times, because he’s going to be walking around with a ‘I love Tyron Woodley’ tattoo on his body.
“So you might as well try and get it back – try and get a chance to redeem yourself. So we’re probably going to fight a couple of times.
“He added the no competition – who does that when they’re confident?
Oscar De La Hoya is returning to the ringCredit: Getty Images – Getty
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“I really believe that fighting him a few times, fighting an OG in the boxing game, and fighting a current guy, there’s no way you can’t respect me now.
“Put those four fights together.”
Woodley, 39, walked out on the UFC after four straight losses, and was without a win in three years.
But he is now committed to a future in boxing, and spent time training with Floyd Mayweather, 44, ahead of his grudge match with Paul, 24.
Woodley said: “I’m in boxing now. I’m here, and you’re going to have this microphone by my face a lot because I ain’t going nowhere.
How Jake Paul and Tyron Woodley compare ahead of their boxing match
“I’m going to be fighting real boxers, and they’re going to have a problem to deal with – and it’s going to be me.
“At the end of the day, I’m in boxing right now. He’s my first opponent. This is your and everybody else’s first chance to watch me box.
“I’m in boxing – there’s no ifs. I’m at the ‘know’ level right now.
“Yes, I will win. I will knock him out. I am in boxing.”
Jake Paul and Tyron Woodley have bet that loser of grudge boxing bout gets tattoo ‘I love’ and winner’s name on them More

LOGAN PAUL admitted his brother Jake’s chances of fighting Conor McGregor have been ‘watered down’ after the Irishman’s horror injury.The Pauls were cageside at UFC 264 in Las Vegas when McGregor broke his tibia at the end of round one against Dustin Poirier – meaning he lost the trilogy bout by doctor stoppage and was later handed a six month medical suspension.
Jake Paul with older brother Logan, rightCredit: Social Media – Refer to Source
Conor McGregor after his horror injury against Dustin PoirierCredit: Getty Images – Getty
The younger Paul, Jake, 24, has continued to chase a fight with McGregor, who underwent surgery and will now be on crutches for six weeks.
But even Logan, 26, conceded the YouTube star has little chance of persuading the southpaw into the ring any time soon.
He said on his podcast: “I think obviously now, Jake’s plans for fighting Conor have been a little watered down because of the whole missing ankle thing.
“You got no leg. No leg, no contract.”
McGregor, 33, first beat Poirier, 32, in 2014 but was knocked out when they rematched in January.
Beforehand, Paul had offered the former two-weight UFC champion $50million to fight him.
But after McGregor was stretchered out of the octagon in the trilogy, the deal was cut to just $23.
Paul had spent $100,000 on a ‘sleepy’ diamond McGregor chain, which he then sent off to Poirier, who plans to auction it for charity.
The American is open to a FOURTH fight with his lightweight rival after the unprecedented ending to their trilogy decider.
McGregor also continued to threaten Poirier’s life after the loss and goaded that his wife Jolie was messaging him on Instagram.
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Jake Paul entered elite company

It left even prankster Paul – who once mocked McGregor’s fiancee Dee Devlin – feeling no sympathy for the richest sportsman in the world.
He said: “He’s a piece of s**t. He’s sitting there on the ground after losing, talking s**t to Dustin Poirier’s wife.
“I don’t feel bad at all. I think he deserves it. I think it’s hilarious. I hope he (Poirier) takes a picture with it (the necklace) and posts it on Instagram.
“I just love to see McGregor plummet. He was a meteoric star that’s now just taking a nosedive.
“Before I wanted to fight him and I offered him $50 million, now my offer is $23.”
Logan Paul reveals shock personal phone call from Dana White More

LOGAN PAUL revealed his shock personal phone call from Dana White – despite the UFC president’s ‘ongoing feud’ with his brother Jake. The YouTuber had White’s number saved having been in a celebrity group chat with him for betting on the Kentucky Derby horse racing festival.
Jake Paul with his older brother Logan, rightCredit: Instagram @jakepaul
Dana White personally called Logan Paul to offer him UFC ticketsCredit: Sportsfile
So he did not know quite what to think when the UFC boss phoned him up amid being in a feud with his younger brother Jake.
But to Logan’s surprise, White was offering him even better cageside seats for UFC 264, which was headlined by Conor McGregor.
He said on his podcast: “I answer, and I’m not sure what to expect. Jake’s p***ed him off, him and Jake have an ongoing feud.
“But I’ve come out publicly and said I love Dana White, always have always will, he’s a ruthless businessman, the head honcho, but I’m not sure how he feels about me.
“By default, my relationship with my brother will always take precedence but if I can be cool with someone I will.
“So he calls me up and says, ‘Hey man, is this Logan?’, and I’m like, ‘Yeah, what’s up Dana’, and he explains that we’ve got two tickets, but he says he has better ones.
“These seats are in what’s called ‘billionaire’s row’, and he says I’ll have a much better experience, and I’m like flabbergasted and honoured.
“Dana White is accommodating me, this is fantastic, and I’m like ‘sure’, I told him ‘thanks Dana,’ and I hung up and Jake is like ‘that was weird’.”
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Jake, 24, has campaigned against White, 51, believing he does not pay his UFC fighters enough.
But Logan, 26, is a big fan of the promoter and even wants to make a transition to the cage after wrestling in high-school.
He has currently boxed three times before, drawing and losing to online rival KSI, 28, before then facing boxing legend Floyd Mayweather.
Mayweather, 44, was taken the full eight-round distance in their exhibition without scoring a knockout, meaning no winner was declared.
Jake meanwhile is 3-0 in his career, all by KO, and faces ex-UFC champion Tyron Woodley, 39, next on Sunday, August 29.
He has so far only beaten KSI’s friend ‘AnEsonGib’, ex-NBA star Nate Robinsion, 37, and retired UFC welterweight Ben Askren, 36.
But despite the limited opposition, he has continued to chase a fight with McGregor, 33, and was cageside with Logan in Las Vegas.
And he watched as the Irishman suffered a horror leg break in his trilogy bout with Dustin Poirier, 32, losing by doctor stoppage at the end of round one.
‘NO LEG, NO CONTRACT’
Jake attended to drum up interest in facing McGregor, but remained largely unnoticed due to the bucket hat he wore.
Logan said: “When I walked in, I said to one of the UFC reps, ‘Hey, is my brother here?’ And she looks at me and she turned white.
“She goes, ‘You brother’s coming?’ I go, ‘I don’t know.’ She goes, ‘F***.’ And I go, ‘I don’t think he’s got anything planned.’
“He came in with a bucket hat and we were surely expecting like a ‘f**k Jake Paul’ chant but no one could see him because he wore a bucket hat.
“And because of that, no attention was drawn to him and he didn’t really get to show off the chain at the event and he really get the chance to distract Conor like he wanted to.
“And I think obviously now, Jake’s plans for fighting Conor have been a little watered down because of the whole missing ankle thing.
“You got no leg. No leg, no contract.”
Logan Paul cageside at UFC 264 to watch Conor McGregorCredit: Getty Images – Getty
Jake Paul has continued to call out Conor McGregorCredit: Getty
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ANTHONY JOSHUA showed off his MMA-style flying knee while training with former UFC middleweight Luke Barnatt. The unified heavyweight champion is currently holidaying in Spain before returning to his training camp back home for his defence agains Oleksandr Usyk.
Anthony Joshua showed off his flying knee while enjoying some MMA training
Anthony Joshua training with ex-UFC middleweight Luke Barnatt
But despite the getaway, AJ is still staying active by visiting Barnatt’s gym Marbella.
He uploaded a video hitting the pads with one of his coaches, Angel Fernandez, as they prepare to fight Usyk in September.
However, Joshua, 31, then switched it up by trying his hand at MMA, getting a striking masterclass from Barnatt, who last fought in December 2020.
AJ drilled kicks, one-two’s and most impressively flying knees, one of which Barnatt pretended knocked him out.
Joshua is not the only heavyweight boxer to have had MMA training, with Tyson Fury linking up with UFC middleweight Darren Till in 2019.
Fury once claimed he would entertain a switch to the UFC but only after retiring from boxing.
But more recently, he changed his mind and revealed he would only be up for fighting in smaller gloves, without any grappling involved.
Fury told talkSPORT: “No, I’ve got no real interest in grappling up and down on the floor and all that sort of stuff.

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“I’m a stand-up fighting man, I don’t wrestle up and down and grab each other’s arms and sit on each other and all that.
“I’ve no interest in all that stuff – I like to stand up and fight so would I ever compete as an MMA fighter? Hell no!
“Would I compete with small gloves on in a cage in a fight? Yes. But no gripping and grappling.
“The noble art of standing up and what men have been doing for centuries. I don’t see any noble science in wrestling up and down the floor.”
UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou, 34, has called out both Joshua and Fury before, having eyed a boxing career before his MMA debut.
He was even linked with a two-fight deal against ex-kickboxer Dillian Whyte who won his only MMA fight, in 2018.
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