YouTuber-turned-professional boxer Jake Paul was last seen inside the boxing ring against Tommy ‘TNT’ Fury earlier this year. Fury was the first actual professional boxer that Paul fought in his young career and as many expected, failed to impress. ‘The Problem Child’ suffered the first loss of his career after going on a six-fight unbeaten streak which included victories against UFC legends Tyron Woodley[twice] and Anderson Silva.
Jake Paul and Nate Diaz are nearing a deal to box, sources close to Diaz’s camp say pic.twitter.com/nEzKZ7c9CL
— Happy Punch (@HappyPunch) April 8, 2023
In a recent revelation, it has come to knowledge that Jake Paul’s next opponent might be another UFC veteran and a fan favorite, Nate Diaz. Former UFC fighter turned combat sport analyst Dan Hardy shared his opinions about the whole Jake Paul situation. “I think the obvious one is Nate Diaz,” he began. “I think that one is megabucks. I think people would tune in because regardless of whether they’d ever watched Jake Paul before or not, that one’s a real game-changer. Especially because of the character and intensity that Diaz brings.“
“It might be a rematch with Tommy Fury but I think Tommy will stay away from that because he’s got the victory and the relief that comes with it,” he said. It’s going to be someone interesting, it might even be [Jorge] Masvidal. I don’t know what his contract situation is with UFC now that he’s retired. They might keep him locked up for a little bit. It might even be GSP [Georges St-Pierre], that would be amazing.”
Is Nate Diaz a good match-up for Jake Paul?
After suffering a defeat, Diaz probably wouldn’t be enthusiastic about taking on Paul. Paul would definitely need to lose more weight than he has been if the does happen. After all, Diaz has competed in the majority of his MMA matches at 155 pounds, most recently at 170. Paul on the other hand generally competes at at weights below 190 and most recently competed against Fury at 183.6.
Diaz for the longest time was known as the best boxer in the UFC. Durability and toughness have always been Diaz’s strengths but the real challenge for the boxer will be his power game. Paul might not be the most technical boxer around but he certainly possesses knockout power. No one will ever forget his one-punch KO against former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley. The match-up, if ever takes place will certainly attract a lot of eyeballs which intern provides both the fighters an insane amount of money and hence they say ‘If it sells, it makes sense’.
