UFC Middleweight Champion Israel Adesanya revealed he is a big fan of Jake Paul and believes the YouTuber is taking his time in the boxing world very seriously.
Jake Paul has taken the fight world by storm. With a professional record of 5-0, the boxer has secured impressive KOs against former MMA stars Ben Askren and Tyron Woodley.
Despite his success, many have doubted The Problem Child’s commitment to the sport, even has he has feuded with UFC President Dana White over fighter pay.
That feud with Dana, however, seems to have been responsible for Israel Adesanya’s lucrative UFC deal.
Israel Adesanya supports Jake Paul
In an interview with talkSPORT, the Nigerian voiced his approval of Paul pushing for better pay and even discussed his fighting style.
“I think Jake Paul was the right guy to [challenge Dana White] at the time. He was one of the guys to get this conversation going that Francis [Ngannou] jumped in,” he said.
“Just because I got my new deal doesn’t mean I just shut up about it. I’m not wrong in saying I think everyone should be getting paid equally for their work. I get paid quite nicely and I’m still greedy. This is the game we’re in, in prizefighting,” The Last Stylebender explained.
Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest updates on Esports, Gaming and more.
Adesanya claims Jake Paul is “really serious” about fighting
According to Adesanya, he has a nice friendship with Jake Paul that began once he realized the YouTuber was a big fan of his.
Adesanya revealed he went to Paul’s house after his victory against Nate Robinson and had some “deep conversations” and realized he wasn’t in the fight game just for “clout.”
“Because if you don’t know him, you just kind of fall into that ‘ah, this snobby little kid we think he’s just doing this for attention, for likes or clout, but you talk to him and it’s like ‘yo, he’s really serious,’” Adesanya added. “He really wants to f**k dudes up. He’s already doing that, look at his last fight. He knocked out Woodley crazy.”
It’s not yet clear who Jake Paul will be fighting next or even if it will be in a boxing ring. The 25-year-old has expressed a desire to compete in MMA and has no shortage of possible opponents with everyone from Jorge Masvidal to Tommy Fury wanting a piece of the YouTuber.
Regardless of the opponent though, it seems like Paul will have Adesanya in his corner, even if it’s just figuratively speaking.