MMA

TYRON WOODLEY called out Jake Paul for a boxing match – but will only fight the YouTuber’s coach J’Leon Love in MMA. Woodley was in close friend Ben Askren’s corner last weekend as the ex-Olympic wrestler was knocked out by internet star Paul.
Jake Paul pictured with assistant coach J’Leon Love
Tyron Woodley has called out Jake Paul and Tyron WoodleyCredit: Getty – Contributor
But a backstage row erupted before the bout as the former UFC champion visited the opposing team’s locker room.
There, he was confronted by Love, a 24-3-1 boxer who has worked as an assistant trainer to unbeaten Paul since last year.
Love, 33, challenged Woodley, 38, to a boxing match, while Paul, 24, did the same to UFC legend Daniel Cormier, 42.
But Woodley is only interested in boxing Paul to avenge Askren’s loss and instead told Love to meet him in the cage.

He said on ESPN: “You had a lot to say in the locker room, let’s fight.
“I wanna hear what [Jake Paul] gotta say about it. You wanna fight me? He could fight me.
“I’ll fight his friend in MMA, because I wanna elbow his ass. I don’t want no little boxing, the poofy gloves.
“I wanna elbow, I wanna f***ing hit his face. I wanna almost break his arm and just let him out.
“So if his boy wants to fight me, he’s gonna have to come and see me in the cage.”
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Askren, 36, was brutally KO’d by Paul inside two minutes and afterwards revealed he wants long-time training partner Woodley to face the internet sensation.
He said: “Tyron is my obvious pick, because Tyron’s a way better boxer than I am. Like, way, way better.
“That’s not even really a comparison in my mind. I wasn’t good at boxing at all!
“My whole take was, I can put 11 weeks into this and be good enough to beat him. Tyron is actually very good at boxing.
“Obviously I’d like to see Jake lose. So I hope it’s Tyron.”
Dana White threatens to take legal action against Jake Paul and tells him to fight a boxer More

MIKE PERRY revealed he was banned from filming his sparring session with Jake Paul but his girlfriend managed to record a video ‘on the sneak’. The UFC welterweight shared some rounds with Paul before the YouTuber fought and knocked out Ben Askren in one round.
Mike Perry reveals his girlfriend filmed his sparring session with Jake Paul
Latory Gonzalez with her partner Mike PerryCredit: Getty
But chaos erupted afterwards as the social media celebrity released a clip after sparring Perry, where the MMA fighter says ‘good job, kicked my ass’.
It did not go down well with the MMA bad boy, 29, who retaliated by calling out Paul, 24, and shared a short clip of the sparring session.
On Perry’s Instagram story, he revealed it was his partner Latory Gonzalez who shot the behind the scenes clip.
He posted: “The real warrior of the story is @latorygonzalez who took this video on the sneak around all his security.”
Recording sparring sessions is universally frowned upon, as it threatens to give away game plans and tactics.
But still, Perry challenged Paul to release the whole session and let fans decide for themselves who got the better of the work.
He captioned on social media: “The only clip we got. Go ahead and post some @jakepaul.
“I took your best shots and walked you down all day. We all know I’m not hard to hit but I’m gonna focus on that now.

“You know there was no danger in boxing a wrestler last night and you gave me a chance to punch you in the face (and I did) and I respected it but you mistook that and that’s my fault.
“I show up with my girl and baby so I don’t bring drama. I show up and fight. I was a fan after you sparred me.
“You showed heart and you’re already successful and you seemed to have a strong team (power in numbers) but you’re a spoiled brat and I’m rich in life.
“You’re broke with a bunch of fake yes men around you that you pay for.
“I don’t f*** with nobody and all the money in the world can’t make you real like me.”
Mike Perry fights in the UFC’s welterweight divisionCredit: Getty
Jake Paul knocked Ben Askren out in round oneCredit: Getty More

JAKE PAUL’s showdown with Ben Askren reportedly drew in a whopping 1.5million pay-per-view buys – a figure which blows a number of UFC PPV events out of the water.The YouTuber turned boxer locked horns with the former UFC welterweight last weekend in the main event of Triller Fight Club in Atlanta.
How Jake Paul’s clash with pay-per-view stacks up against the top-selling UFC events
Jake Paul knocked out Ben Askren in the first round of their Triller Fight Club boxing matchCredit: Getty
Paul, 24, starched the ex-ONE Championship and Bellator lightweight champion in under two minutes to stretch his professional record to 3-0.
According to Paul, one-and-half million people tuned in to see his destruction of Askren.
If those numbers are true, the show would trump the pay-per-view sales of six of the ten top-selling events in UFC history.
When comparing the UFC’s biggest pay-per-view shows against Paul’s much-maligned clash with Askren, only four events top the Triller Fight Club bout.
Conor McGregor’s UFC 229, UFC 202 and UFC 257 bouts occupy first, second and third place in the list with 2.4million, 1.65m and 1.6m buys respectively.
Brock Lesnar’s rematch with former heavyweight champion Frank Mir at UFC 100 is the final event with more sales than Paul vs Askren with 1.6million buys.
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Jake Paul is cutting no corners with his diet
The sales of Paul vs Askren also exceed those of McGregor’s UFC 194 showdown with Jose Aldo and the Irishman’s historic UFC 205 clash with Eddie Alvarez.
Paul is still hoping to bag a fight with The Notorious, which he reckons is a lot more ‘realistic’ after his smashing of Askren.
When asked about a potential clash with the UFC’s poster boy, Paul told MMA Junkie: “We’ll see. There are a lot of people.
“But honestly, when it comes down to signing the contract, these guys duck. Honestly, we’ll see.
“The McGregor fight just became more realistic, like I’ve been saying. I just want to do big fights.”
Jake Paul is still keen on a boxing match with former UFC champion Conor McGregorCredit: Getty

He added: “I’m going to take some time off.
“I’ve been working my f*cking ass off. I’m only going to do big fights. I want to challenge myself at the same time.
“Ben Askren was a step up. OK, look what happened (in) 1:59. We’ll see who the next big challenge is.
“I want to challenge myself. I want to do 3 million, 4 million pay-per-view buys. Who’s going to bring in those numbers?”
Ben Askren slams referee for ending Jake Paul fight and reveals he told him he was ready to continue More

DANA WHITE has threatened Jake Paul with legal action if the YouTuber tries to pursue a boxing match with an active UFC fighter.The former Disney star has campaigned for fights with Nate Diaz and Dustin Poirier following his one-minute demolition of retired MMA star Ben Askren last weekend.
Jake Paul smoked former UFC fighter Ben Askren in a boxing match last weekendCredit: Getty Images – Getty
Dana White has suggested he could take legal action to stop Jake Paul from facing any UFC fightersCredit: Zuffa LLC
UFC supremo White has grown tired of seeing the social media star pursue bouts with his fighters, telling Paul via Yahoo Sports: “Why don’t you go fight a f****g boxer?”
“What the fuck do these guys keep talking to UFC guys for?
“I’m gonna have to slap them with another f****g legal letter, these fucking idiots.
“Go talk to f****g boxers. What are you doing?”
White isn’t a fan of YouTubers competing as professional fighters and believes the popularity of the fights is a sign of how far boxing has fallen.
He said: “Boxing continues to go like this [points his hands downward].
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“This guy [Jake Paul] is playing this thing perfectly and boxing’s in such a bad place.
“They’re doing a really good job at sucking in people to buy into this thing. Good for him.”
In the build-up to Paul vs Askren, a confident White revealed he’d be willing to bet $1million on the latter beating the YouTuber turned boxer.
But the veteran promoter insists he never actually placed the bet.
Dana White insists doesn’t owe Snoop Dogg $2million after Jake Paul’s win over Ben AskrenCredit: Zuffa LLC

He told TSN: “I don’t even want to say it. I don’t even want to say what I think happened in that fight.
“But I can tell you this, I don’t owe Snoop [Dogg] $2 million.
“I never bet – let me make it clear right here to everybody: I have never made an illegal bet, ever.
“I did not make an illegal bet on Saturday night. I did not bet $2 million with Snoop or anybody.”
Jake Paul is happy to see Dana White lose a million dollars on his fight with Ben Askren More

CONOR MCGREGOR has a big chip on his shoulder ahead of his return to the octagon – and plans to use it to ‘break a few faces’.The Notorious is gearing up for a trilogy fight with former featherweight foe Dustin Poirier, whom he’ll meet on July 10 in the main event of UFC 264 in Las Vegas.
Conor McGregor is gearing up for a trilogy fight with Dustin PoirierCredit: Reuters
The Notorious’ rubber match with Poirier will headline UFC 264 on July 10Credit: UFC
McGregor, 32, suffered a brutal second-round KO loss to The Diamond in January and is determined to remind the world he’s still an elite lightweight in their rubber match.
He tweeted: “I’ve got a big chip on my shoulder and I’m gonna break another few faces with it.”
McGregor’s vow to ‘break another few faces’ with his shoulder – which he shattered Donald Cerrone’s nose with at UFC 246 – came after he was embroiled in a row with lightweight rival Justin Gaethje.
Former interim lightweight champ Gaethje took aim at the UFC’s poster boy after seeing him criticise his head coach Trevor Wittman for not competing in mixed martial arts.
And that drew a quick and blistering response from Mystic Mac.
He replied: “I’d smoke you and your coach at the same time in these patented @McGregorFast fight gloves.”
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Despite his efforts currently being focused on mixed martial arts, McGregor continues to be linked with a return to the boxing world – which he entered in August 2017 for a blockbuster fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr.
YouTube star Jake Paul has been trying to lure the Irishman back to the ring and renewed his calls for the fight after his one-minute decimation of former UFC star Ben Askren.
McGregor’s recent sparring partner Dylan Moran reckons the UFC’s first simultaneous two-division champion will return to the squared circle one day, telling Sky Sports: “There are plenty of years left in Conor.
“Wherever the big fights are at. You can see by the rematch with Dustin that he doesn’t shy away from challenges.

Conor McGregor boxed Floyd Mayweather in August 2017Credit: Getty

“If the right challenge is put to him, he will take it on board.
“I wouldn’t be surprised to see Conor back in the boxing ring, for sure.
“I’ve been in there with him at Irish level, European level and world level. Conor has given it to me as much as anyone. That speaks for itself.
“When you are a person of Conor’s notes, you will have naysayers and doubters of the highest degree. Even if his boxing was the best, people would say it’s useless.
“I’ve sparred him. I’ve been in there with him, and I’m a boxer. So my opinion is one to listen to.”
Dana White confirms Dustin Poirier vs Conor McGregor trilogy fight at UFC 264 More

DANIEL CORMIER said Ben Askren was ‘laughing all the way to the back’ after being knocked out by Jake Paul. The retired UFC welterweight was stopped in two minutes following a simple one-two combination.
Ben Askren, pictured with wife Amy, didn’t look too upset about his defeat
Askren, 36, barely got an attack off during the fight but did make it to his feet after being floored.
Still, it was not enough to convince the referee he was stable enough to continue, with the fight waved off afterwards.
Askren was captured afterwards smiling as he made his way out of the arena with his wife Amy.
They married in 2010 and have three children together – daughters Alex and Andy and son Ozzie.
Cormier, 41, tweeted: “Wait a minute, did Askren get us all?
“Like this is some magician stuff he wasn’t laughing on his way to the back was he? Cmon Ben lol @Benaskren.”
Askren was guaranteed a £360,000 purse but bonuses after the pay-per-view sales means he can expect to clear £1million.
And fans accused the retired fighter of cashing out with an underwhelming performance.
That’s ben walking to the bank right now.— Adam Shiek (@adam_shiek) April 18, 2021

I mean he made it clear he might lose, and he also just made $1M for 60 seconds of his time. And now he just goes back to wrestling. I’d be smiling too.— Jesse (@jesseg183) April 18, 2021

Fake fight , only for money , I Think they set up this— Rafal_ski (@Eryk25073736) April 18, 2021

So Ben Askren can take a punch from some of the most lethal men on the planet in the UFC but cant go a round with Jake Paul. Nothing and nobody will ever convince me that this was anything other than a fix. A complete embarrassment to the sport of professional boxing— Gerry Twomz 🔰 (@TwomeyGerard) April 18, 2021

Just saw the Jake Paul/Askren stoppage. What a load of guff. Ref said he was stumbling… not when he walked forward he wasn’t, he took a step to the right. Fix at the highest level.— Dan B (@DannoGB) April 18, 2021

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One said: “Just saw the Jake Paul/Askren stoppage. What a load of guff.
“Ref said he was stumbling… not when he walked forward he wasn’t, he took a step to the right. Fix at the highest level.”
Another said: “So Ben Askren can take a punch from some of the most lethal men on the planet in the UFC but cant go a round with Jake Paul.
“Nothing and nobody will ever convince me that this was anything other than a fix. A complete embarrassment to the sport of professional boxing.”
Askren was subject to ridicule online as he was stopped by the social media star – but later admitted it was justifiable.
He said: “It’s probably deserved. I got knocked out by Jake Paul, it’s f***ing embarrassing.”
Jake Paul knocked out Ben Askren in round oneCredit: Getty
The referee waved off the contestCredit: Getty
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