Jake Paul Calls Out 'Prime' UFC Fighter For Potential Next Fight, Says It Would Be His 'Toughest Challenge' To Date

Jake Paul has claimed that there is a “lot of personal beef” between himself and Jorge Masvidal after admitting that he would love to face him next.

The 24-year-old YouTube star’s fledging boxing record extended to 4-0 with a split-decision victory over former UFC welterweight champ Tyron Woodley in August.

Paul has admitted that he could soon test his skills against fierce rival Tommy Fury, who defeated Anthony Taylor by unanimous decision on the Paul vs Woodley undercard.

The YouTuber-turned-boxer has also received a lucrative fight offer from Vitor Belfort after the UFC legend’s destructive first-round TKO win over Evander Holyfield on Saturday.

However, Paul hasn’t overlooked his rivalry with Masvidal after the UFC star backed Woodley to beat him in his clash in Cleveland, Ohio.

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Masvidal had previously helped Paul in his training preparations ahead of his bout with former UFC fighter Ben Askren in April.

When he was asked who he would like to face next, Paul insisted that Masvidal would be the “most relevant” opponent and the “biggest name” he could fight.

“I mean, honestly, just from a personal standpoint, I would love for it to be Masvidal,” he told Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour.

“Just cause of the s**t talk. Just cause of his name. Just cause he’s still in his prime era and there’s a lot of personal beef there. I just took out his boy Tyron.

“But hopefully Dana [White] would let him out of his contract, but we’re not sure if that can happen. But for me personally, I think that would be the toughest challenge, the toughest guy and the biggest name. The most relevant currently.

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“I think that’s the one to make. I think it will happen at some point regardless, but that’s at the top of my list for sure.”

Masvidal hasn’t fought inside the octagon since his second consecutive defeat to UFC welterweight champ Kamaru Usman in April.

The 36-year-old MMA star inked a new multi-fight contract with the UFC ahead of his first defeat to Usman at UFC 251 in July 2020.

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Paul did play down his expectations of fighting Masvidal by firing out a shot at UFC president Dana White, who he has previously criticised over MMA fighters’ pay.

“We’ll see,” he said, before adding: “His dad Dana White just has to let him. That’s what it comes down to.

“Dana wouldn’t let [Georges St-Pierre] fight in that Triller Fight Club that he was trying to do. Dana blocked him from doing that, so Dana’s just blocking everyone, being greedy.

“I think he’s starting to realise I’m embarrassing a lot of his UFC fighters. It’s a bad look for him but there is money to be made, so we’ll see what ends up happening for sure.”

Topics: Jorge Masvidal, Jake Paul, UFC, MMA, Boxing

Adnan Riaz

Adnan Riaz is a journalist for SPORTbible. He studied for a B.A. in History at the University of York and followed it up with an M.A. in Multimedia Journalism at MMU. Before he started writing about sports, he spent over four years in the gaming press. He has worked for several publications, including Hardcore Gamer, LADbible and the Manchester Evening News. Follow him on Twitter to find out what he is working on next. Got a story tip for Adnan? Email him: [email protected]

@AdnanRiaz9