While YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul has made a habit of selling his fights through blatant disrespect, former two-division UFC champion Daniel Cormier believes Paul is actually “very respectful”. Cormier discussed the generational difference between himself and Paul in a recent video uploaded to Cormier’s YouTube channel.
“Jake Paul, today, announced that he has signed with the PFL. A couple of weeks ago, Jake Paul and I were messaging each other about an appearance on my show, DC & RC, and we were going back and forth talking about his future, and honestly, Jake and I have had some run-ins. But when I started messaging him, he’s a kid that’s very respectful. We had respectful conversations, we really did. We didn’t argue, we didn’t fight.
DC: Jake Paul Secretly “Very Respectful”
He’s a kid that, he has an idea of what he wants to do. Now, these kids today are different. It was like [Israel] Adesanya with [Jon] Jones. Where I would kind of hold back, Adesanya would just say whatever it is he wanted to say about Jones. If there was an accusation, he would levy the accusation even if they hadn’t proven it true. That is what kids like Jake Paul do today. He’s very boisterous, he’s very verbal, he speaks big, but he was respectful.”
Cormier was one of many fighters blasting Jake Paul early on for boxing small, retired mixed martial artists. Among other names Cormier suggested was Anderson Silva, a former UFC middleweight champion and now an active professional boxer. Paul did exactly that, and it appears to have earned Cormier’s respect.
“But will Jake Paul actually fight in the PFL? A lot of boxers say they’re going to fight, but the never actually do. Here’s the thing about Jake Paul though: He’s from Ohio, a wrestling hotbed. Ohio has some of the best high-school wrestling in the entire country.
Jake Paul was a high-school wrestler there and so was his brother Logan, and they weren’t bad. So although it seems as though Jake Paul does a lot of things to drum up interest, I believe this one. He’ll actually fight.”
Paul’s brother Logan’s high-school wrestling has translated into pro wrestling, with Logan Paul currently signed to the WWE. Jake Paul’s own wrestling pedigree remains unclear, with the YouTuber focused mostly on boxing so far, but with his PFL debut pending, the world may well see a whole new side to Jake Paul.
Do you think DC is right about Jake Paul? Let us know in the comments.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kCTgVC6FyIE
