While not everybody likes it, Jake Paul undeniably knows how to fight, but can he handle himself well enough to compete with Conor McGregor?
Since putting on the gloves for the first time, ‘The Problem Child’ has utilised every ounce of his obnoxious personality to quickly become one of the biggest PPV draws on the planet.
In a testament to his salesmanship, he’s embarked on a fierce rivalry with the MMA community, tempting some of the best fighters on the planet away from their natural disciplines with the promise of huge financial rewards.
But for athletes like Ben Askren and Tyron Woodley, who rely heavily on their wrestling, the idea of setting foot in a boxing risk was always going to be a risk. And sadly, for the two sporting greats, it wasn’t one that paid off.
However, while Paul is happy with his victories in the squared circle, he’s still not got his hands on the man he wants the most — Conor McGregor.
And one boxing icon thinks that the controversial YouTuber would have a good chance in the cage as well as the ring.
Paulie Malignaggi picks Jake Paul to beat Conor McGregor
Since sparring with McGregor in the lead-up to his bout against Floyd Mayweather, Paulie Malignaggi has held a grudge against the Irishman.
In a brutal blow, the former 2x UFC King released sparring footage in which he got the better of the American. However, Malinaggi claims he dominated the session and that his rival picked the only clips in which he looked good.
Sadly, we’ll probably never know the truth. But at least it’s led to some interesting comments from the former two-time boxing world champion.
Speaking to Lord Ping, he said: “Jake has a high school wrestler background. So he would not be totally out of his element in the cage. He’d need to be alert to his kicks, but McGregor had absolutely no balls. If you make him just a little bit uncomfortable, you are going to put yourself in a position where you might win the fight.
“You can make him uncomfortable by beating on him – or if he’s beating on you. If you just hang in the fight he begins to get nervous and paranoid – he’s not a true fighter. He looks for the first window to jump out of. He’s got athletic ability, but his anxiety levels get high. That’s why he gets so tired in fights.”
Paulie Malignaggi slams Conor McGregor
The 42-year-old added: “This guy posts pictures of him running up mountains, swimming 25 miles, bicycling through the desert – just to make himself look like he’s Rocky during training, and then he gets in the cage and he’s tired after 30 seconds. He’s got no balls. There’s no way you can get that tired unless your anxiety levels are through the roof. He gets scared in there.
“Jake just needs the ability to hang in there and he can start to trouble him a little. He can put himself in the position to win the fight. I think McGregor’s boxing is brutally bad. But at this point, even in MMA, if you hang with him he will get uncomfortable.”