Is Jake Paul The Savior Or Enemy To Professional Fighters?

While we have no idea who Jake Paul might fight in 2022, the one thing we can count on is continuous trolling. He continues to antagonize the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) President, Dana White, and several of his fighters. Paul and White have been trading blows back and forth ever since Dana disrespected Paul’s paper view numbers against former UFC fighter Ben Askren.

“Paul’s PPV numbers are full of s–t,” said Dana White.

Paul clearly took this personally and decided to hit elbow the belt as well. He threatened White by saying that he will punch him in the head if they each other. Not to mention, he also made fun of White’s s*x-tape blackmail story and takes regular shots at retired and current UFC fighters. Jake Paul also attempted to expose the UFC’s exploitative pay structure.

Recently Paul challenged White about the UFC payment methods again. According to SB Nation, a lawsuit filed by former UFC fighters exposed that the promotion has essentially capped fighter earnings at 20% of their total income. Over the past five years, these numbers have proven to be quite the shortchange for fighters compared to other major American league sports where most athletes earn close to 50%.

His latest social media post targeted the UFC once again. He proposed that he’d retire from boxing immediately and fight Jorge Masvidal in UFC if he brought the pay partly up to the 50% mark.

Happy new year @danawhite. Here is a real challenge for you…

I will immediately retire from boxing and fight Jorge Masvidal in the UFC if you agree to: pic.twitter.com/bJScDVITvL

— Jake Paul (@jakepaul) January 1, 2022

Dana White responds to Jake Paul

It didn’t take much time for White to respond to Paul, claiming that he has ties with Paul’s manager and former UFC’s CFO, Nakisa Bidarian.

In a video shared on Twitter, White expressed his disbelief, stating that no one believes the words you put out today were actually written by you. He further commented on the individual standing in the middle during the stare-downs, referring to him as the manager with distinct physical features.

White added that the person in question was once employed as his accountant, but he has since severed ties with him and holds a negative opinion of him. White challenged the notion that others could handle the business better and sarcastically suggested they start their own venture with the assistance of the aforementioned individual.

.@jakepaul you never responded to the challenge pic.twitter.com/1uzI9mur1T

— danawhite (@danawhite) January 2, 2022

White emphasized that the person in question should concentrate on their own business endeavors. He pointed out their struggles in selling pay-per-views and contrasted them with the popularity of fighters like Jorge Masvidal, Nate Diaz, Conor McGregor, and Mike Tyson. In summary, White advised them to focus on their own shortcomings rather than criticizing others.

Paul threatens to overtake the UFC

Oddly enough, Paul and Bidarian have already started their own business, Most Valuable Promotions. They began this business venture in April of 2021 around the Askren fight. However, with all the information White spewed, all the numbers say otherwise. Their first event with Paul vs. Woodley sold approximately 500,000 PPVs, per source. This is very impressive for any organization let alone a YouTube star.

Many thought it was a fluke, in his latest fight against Woodley which took place last minute due to a Tommy Fury injury. They racked in approximately 150,000 to 200,000 which is understandable how disappointing the first fight was for many fans. However, this fight ended in an electrifying knockout that will only increase the YouTuber turned boxers’ marketability for upcoming events.

Any company that can break 100,000 PPV buys should be considered a threat to the UFC.