Few people expect Jake Paul to beat Anthony Joshua when the two engage in a pro boxing match on December 19th. Some even worry Paul might die. But if he doesn’t, they hope the loss is bad enough that it
marks the end of Jake Paul as a fighter they have to pay attention to.
Sorry, but we doubt that very much. No matter what happens during the big money Netflix-sponsored fight, Paul’s got at least one ‘redemption’ fight in him. And if his boxing beatdown is so bad that it hurts his ability to generate a compelling match-up in that sport, he’s always got that long-awaited MMA debut in his back pocket.
And the perfect opponent.
“I for sure want to fight Nate Diaz in MMA,” Paul told Sean O’Malley during a recent hangout. “Like, bro, that’s my life’s dream. I would f–king maul his weak ass. He’s probably the worst fighter I ever fought. And Conor got torched by him.”
Paul and Diaz boxed back in August 2023 with Paul taking a one-sided decision over the former UFC fighter. Diaz would later blame injuries for his lackluster performance — injuries that were so severe that he decided to stop training altogether and just party it up in Miami for the last four weeks of training camp.
You never know which Diaz is going to show up for a fight. A disinterested Nate that’s just there for a paycheck? Or the Stockton badass that took Conor McGregor to the limit in two fights and beat Jorge Masvidal in their boxing match? From Paul’s perspective, Nate is a winnable fight: Diaz was too small, too old, and too uninterested to hurt him in boxing, and he thinks that will be the case in MMA.
We’d say that’s probably a miscalculation, the same kind of miscalculation that’s led to Jake Paul thinking he’s got a shot against Anthony Joshua. But that’s always the lure with Paul fights: combat sports fans tune in thinking that uppity YouTuber is finally going to get what’s coming to him. It hasn’t really happened yet in satisfying fashion, but it’s looking good for December 19th.
And if he wants to take on a Diaz brother in the cage after that as a soft rebound, he’ll learn what many MMA fighters have learned in the boxing ring: these are very different sports.
