Paddy Pimblett has explained why he has gained a 'little bit of respect' for Jake Paul ahead of his fight against Mike Perry.
Paul was supposed to fight Mike Tyson this weekend until the boxing legend suffered an ulcer scare on a flight.
He was advised to withdraw on medical grounds, with a new date scheduled for later this year.
Perry, who has made a name for himself in Bare Knuckle FC, replaced Tyson against Paul, with their boxing bout just days away.
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Conor McGregor fired a brutal shot at Paul as he threw his support behind the former UFC fighter.
And McGregor's fellow UFC star Pimblett has also made his feelings clear on Paul vs. Perry.
Despite their previous exchanges, the 29-year-old paid his respects to 'The Problem Child' for facing a durable opponent in Perry.
"You know what? Give Jake Paul his dues for that one. I didn't think he'd fight someone like Mike Perry. You know what I mean? He's fought a load of f**king crabs," he told online-slots-real-money.com.
"He's fought a load of clowns. He fought Anderson Silva and Tyron Woodley when they were both over 40, know what I mean? Anderson's a Thai boxer and Woodley's a wrestler, know what I mean?
"But Mike Perry is a boxer, he's a striker, he's got hands, so, I'll be honest, Jake Paul has gained a little bit of respect from me for that, because I didn't think he'd fight someone as good as Mike Perry, so it'll be good to see how he does, it'll be an interesting one."
However, having hinted at a potential departure away from the UFC ahead of his fight against King Green on July 27, the Liverpool fighter laid down his condition to fight Paul.
"If Jake Paul sends a contract over for a couple of million dollars and wanted to fight me, let's do it," he added. "I think that's what half ruined Conor's career, the fact that he went and boxed Floyd Mayweather and took so long out of MMA and focused on his boxing, it hindered his MMA career.
"Conor could be on that Mount Rushmore, he really could, if he would have stayed fighting in the UFC, you know what I mean? It’s one of them though, if Mayweather comes in and says he’ll box you and you could get f**king a hundred million or something, who's gonna say no? Lad, you can't turn it down. It's as simple as that. We're prize fighters, at the end of the day.
"That's what people forget. We do this to get paid. It's all about money. Legacy plays a part but there’s a difference from getting a couple of million in the UFC and getting over a hundred million fighting Mayweather. Massive difference lad, you're doing it."
Topics: Spotlight, Paddy Pimblett, Jake Paul, Boxing
Nasir Jabbar