Jake Paul has ambitious goals in both boxing and MMA, but his questionable competition choices, upcoming high-profile boxing matches, and difficulty finding suitable MMA opponents suggest he may stick to boxing rather than transitioning to MMA.
Jake Paul has lofty ambitions for his fighting career. He’s adamant about becoming a boxing world champion.
Paul’s progression in competition has been questionable. Through 10 professional fights, he’s faced a social influencer, an NBA player, four MMA fighters, two journeymen boxers, and Tommy Fury. Fury is the only one to defeat him.
Paul signed with the PFL to compete in MMA. But each day makes it seem less likely.
He’s booked for a boxing match in July against BKFC star Mike Perry. In November, he faces former heavyweight champ Mike Tyson.
Paul turns 28 in January. This all points to him sticking with boxing rather than MMA.
Dan Hardy thinks Paul might have too much on his plate. MMA could end up as the side dish that gets bumped off.
“I think Jake knows where he wants to go,” Hardy told MMA Fighting. “He stepped away from celebrity-style boxing and fought lesser-known opponents.”
“That spurred this fight against Mike Tyson,” Hardy continued. “I would never tell Tyson not to fight; he’s a scary individual.”
“Jake’s carving his own path,” Hardy added. “Nobody else is doing what Jake Paul’s doing.”
Hardy believes Paul wanted to get Nate Diaz in a cage for an MMA fight. But Diaz showed no interest in signing with the PFL.
Hardy thinks Diaz sees Paul as high risk but low reward. If Diaz wins, it’s expected; if he loses, it could hurt his future prospects.
Hardy doubts Diaz will face Paul in the cage. This might be why Paul has waned on competing in MMA.
“I think Jake had his heart set on Nate Diaz,” Hardy said. “But I don’t think Nate wants to risk losing to Jake.”
Without Diaz, finding the right opponent for Paul is tough. Boxing offers guaranteed multi-million dollar paydays that MMA can’t match.
Hardy suggests Tyron Woodley as a potential opponent for Paul in MMA. Woodley has two losses to Paul in boxing but vastly more experience in MMA.
Woodley lost their second fight brutally, ending face down after a punch from Paul. Despite this, Woodley might entice Paul into an MMA bout.
It’s hard to see such a matchup as anything but a mismatch due to Woodley’s experience. These issues will continue haunting Paul’s transition into MMA.
“The challenge is who do you fight first?” Hardy theorized about crossover athletes like Claressa Shields and Savannah Marshall.
“You’re not putting Jake against Anthony Pettis,” Hardy said. “But fighting someone unknown is basically wasted effort.”
“Even if he fought me,” Hardy mused, “I’m 42 and haven’t fought since 1963.” He trains most days but doubts Jake would last a round with him in an MMA fight due to lacking skills needing training camp fills.
Finding the right opponent remains the challenge for Paul’s potential move into MMA.