After months of teasing MMA fans, along with with his continuous rivalry with UFC President Dana White, Jake Paul might be fighting inside a cage soon.
The 25-year-old, fighting former MMA champion Anderson Silva on October 29 in a boxing bout, recently discussed the idea of competing in MMA. On the BS w/ Jake Paul podcast, Paul talked about a transition.
“I’ve got an announcement coming soon — I can just tease that,” Paul said, via MMA Junkie. “I’m working with a big organization right now on a whole thing in MMA that also has to do with me fighting, and we’re going to have an announcement soon.”
When he was younger, Paul was an amateur wrestler. He started his boxing career in 2018, beating Deji in an exhibition bout. Paul has since gone 5-0 as a professional, beating AnEsonGib, Nate Robinson, Ben Askren, and Tyron Woodley twice. “The Problem Child” has attempted to fight Tommy Fury and Hasim Rahman Jr., but both fights were nixed due to weight and visa issues on the side of Rahman and Fury.
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Jake Paul vs. The UFC and MMA
While boxing, Paul has used his platform to call out White and the UFC for better fighter pay. White and Paul have exchanged verbal jabs against one another during press conferences. Paul has even offered to compete in the octagon to face Conor McGregor. In a tweet, Paul offered McGregor and White a one-fight deal. If Paul won, White would agree to a proposal he offered regarding pay and healthcare.
Paul also showcased his wrestling skills while calling out McGregor.
While I’m training MMA, the @TheNotoriousMMA is drinking Jack daniels in Dubai putting up sloppy boxing videos. Jackass. pic.twitter.com/cNFLzH0Vf1
— Jake Paul (@jakepaul) March 12, 2022
Several fighters have called out Paul by name in an attempt to get their hands on the loud-mouthed star.
Paul works with Showtime, which has a deal with Bellator MMA. Chael Sonnen stated that if Paul is serious about an MMA fight, his first opponent could be Bellator's Dillon Danis. Danis has two MMA fights under his belt (his last fight in 2019), and has called out Paul in the past on social media.
Regarding the move to MMA, Paul stated it may take until 2023-2024 for him to fully commit. He would work with American Kickboxing Academy, home to Daniel Cormier, Khabib Nurmagomedov, and Cain Velasquez, among others.
“I want to do it, and Javier Mendez said he would train me,” Paul went on to say. “I’ll go to (American Kickboxing Academy). I probably need a year, year and a half, to get the kicks down. I already know jiu-jitsu. I want to be able to do everything in there – at least checking kicks. I know how to wrestle already.”
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Who is Anderson Silva?
Silva made his MMA debut in 1997 and joined the UFC in 2006. He beat Chris Leben via KO in his UFC debut and beat Rich Franklin to win the UFC middleweight title. From 2006-2012, Silva went on a legendary run. He successfully defended the title 10 times and was on a 16-fight win streak.
Since 2013, however, Silva's MMA run took a little detour. After losing the middleweight title against Chris Weidman at UFC 162, Silva went 1-6 with one no-contest. Injuries, age, and surgeries affected his career. Silva's last fight was a TKO loss against Uriah Hall in October 2020. He was later released from his UFC contract.
Silva previously competed in a boxing ring in 1998 and 2005, going 1-1. He returned in 2021, beating Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in Mexico. In September 2021, Silva knocked out former MMA fighter Tito Ortiz in the first round. He recently fought Bruno Machado this past May in a non-scored bout.