Tyron Woodley makes surprise Jake Paul admission after saying he has a 'screw loose'

Jake Paul has received praise from Tyron Woodley, despite beating the former UFC welterweight champion on two occasions.

Having rose to fame for posting viral videos on social media and YouTube, Paul's venture into boxing across the past six years has made him one of the disruptive figures in the sport.

'The Problem Child' has fought some of the biggest names in boxing, notably Mike Tyson and Anthony Joshua, who knocked him out in the sixth round of their fight in December.

Paul's jaw was broken in two places by AJ and he required surgery after the fight, with the 29-year-old using the last seven months to recover and assess his next steps.

The American superstar even considered retiring from combat sports, but he quickly put those claims to bed after his company, Most Valuable Promotions (MVP) announced they had merged with PFL (Professional Fighters League).

A game-changing merger was followed by confirmation that Paul would try his hand at MMA in 2027, already issuing an official call out to Nate Diaz after beating him in a boxing match in 2023.

Paul was signed to PFL's roster previously but did not fight in MMA, although with that set to change, excitement is building for his first fight in the octagon.

Having established himself as one of the most divisive figures in combat sports, the YouTuber-turned-boxer does receive his fair share of criticism and praise.

But no one can deny that Paul has had a huge impact on boxing and boasts a solid professional record of 12 wins from 14 bouts, even if some of those victories came against lesser opposition.

Tyron Woodley says Jake Paul has a 'screw loose'

Tyron Woodley is one of several who has been on the receiving end of some blows from Paul. The former UFC welterweight champion lost against him in August 2021 via split-decision and then tasted a second defeat four months later after stepping in for Tommy Fury.

Woodley was outclassed by Paul on both occasions, but 'The Chosen One' has given himself credit, suggesting that his fight against Paul was the catalyst for his boxing career.

"I say this humbly, but I never fought Jake Paul. He fought me," Woodley told GIVEMESPORT.

"I was the first person that gave him the credibility. I was a person who won five world championships, and he was the one that everybody deemed as just a YouTube internet fighter. And for me, I always gave him the respect. I trained my butt off, and I went out there and I did what I needed to do. And I came up short.

"You can't make mistakes in boxing. That's something that many people find out the hard way. And I'm one of those guys. You can't have one moment where you have a mental lapse or you don't have your hands up."

The 44-year-old may not have achieved success in boxing like his former opponent, but he did praise Paul for his attributes, while claiming he has a "screw loose".

"Jake is an athlete. He's got a screw loose. You know what I mean?" Woodley added.

"He's got power, and he's fighting all these bucket list fights that he's in a win-win situation. If he loses, all. He lost to Tyron. Or he lost to Ben Askren. Or he lost to Nate [Diaz] or Anderson [Silva] or Anthony Joshua, right?

"The only fight that he fought and he lost to somebody, which I think was his easiest opponent, was Tommy Fury. That was his on paper easiest opponent. He had a jab with no power. That's it, you know.

"I think any fighter or any person, because you got to call him a fighter, man. You got to, you can't act like he's not a fighter. Any fighter that rises to the cage, you know, when the competition is stiffer, then they do better. You know what I mean. You've got to add that as an attribute, and I feel like he has that attribute."

Woodley has signed up with Real American Freestyle wrestling for two huge bouts in the coming weeks, as he takes on current active UFC stars Joaquin Buckley and Khamzat Chimaev in freestyle wrestling bouts, having called time on his professional MMA career.