Has there ever been a more divisive figure in the sport of boxing than Jake Paul? The YouTuber-turned-pro boxer elicits a binary response from sports fans and the general public. You either hate him or love him — there is rarely any fence-sitting in this debate.
On Feb. 23, those praying for his downfall were duly rewarded. In the much-anticipated bout at Saudi Arabia’s Diriyah Arena in Riyadh — watched on by Cristiano Ronaldo and Mike Tyson — Paul slipped to a narrow split-decision defeat to Tommy Fury.
This was the real test that the boxing gatekeepers were convinced would derail the Jake Paul hype train. Having scored victories over, in order, a YouTuber, a former NBA star, a retired MMA star with no background in striking and three mildly legit wins over two ageing UFC stars — a pro boxer was bound to put Paul in his place.
But the American was still standing at the final bell. He was not knocked out and he was not outclassed. In fact, his neatly disguised jab in the final round sat Fury down and forced a count from the referee. He may have experienced defeat for the first time in his short boxing career, but Paul has begrudgingly earned a little more respect from the boxing world. Even Tommy’s big brother, and heavyweight boxing champion, Tyson Fury, conceded Paul did “brilliantly.”
While certain quarters of the internet are still basking in the schadenfreude, they are missing the point: Combat sports need Jake Paul.
Technical boxing skills aside, the 26-year-old has transformed boxing. The Pay-Per-View numbers and endorsements he pulled in as a headliner earned him the number 46 spot on Forbes’ 2022 50 Highest Paid Athletes list. Paul is estimated to have earned $38 million from just three fights. Tommy Fury banked more than $2 million, which is easily his biggest-ever payday.
Whichever way you look at it, Jake Paul is box-office and has opened up the sport of boxing to a whole new audience. People are fascinated to find out how far he can go in the sport, and others are keen to see him humbled by a vicious KO. Either way, they are invested in the Jake Paul journey whether they like it or not.
Whatever you think of the calibre of his opponents to this point, they do not mind putting their professional pride on the line because Paul makes them rich. How else do you explain why so many fading sports stars are willing to be his potential punchbag?
There is a trickle-down effect for fighters that are on the undercard, too. The financial benefits of fighting on a Jake Paul card are lucrative and for the fighters below his main events, there is a chance to showcase their skills to hundreds of thousands of viewers at home and in sold-out stadiums. It is what every pro boxer dreams about.
Paul’s lofty ambitions are not selfish either. Sure, he has dreams of becoming a world champion, but he has also become the unelected spokesperson for fair pay among fighters across all combat sports.
When Hasim Rahman Jr. pulled out of his fight against Paul at New York’s iconic Madison Square Garden, the whole card was cancelled. When this happens, nobody gets paid. Not Rahman Jr., not Jake Paul and certainly not the fighters who had trained hard to take part in the event. Paul ensured they all received 50 percent of their upcoming purse by using his own wealth.
Since then he has gone head-to-head with UFC president Dana White as he advocates for better pay for their stable of fighters. Cynics will contest that the very public nature of this is self-serving for Paul as it boosts his profile. But who can argue that a fighter putting their health on the line every time they step into a ring or octagon should not be paid more? Paul even offered to end his ongoing feud with Dana White and retire from boxing if he “increased fighter pay and provided long-term healthcare.” White’s response? “(It is) never gonna happen while I’m here, believe me,” he told GQ.
But Paul has taken his crusade a step further and signed with a rival MMA outfit, the Professional Fighters League, as the ambiguous head of advocacy. He will fight under the brand new “PPV Super Fight Division” and put himself in charge of the fighters’ pay. This includes a 50 percent revenue split for all fighters on each card, the ability to choose their own sponsors and remain as individuals. This is everything the UFC is not, and just shows that the fair pay noise from Paul is not going away.
Purists may never warm to Paul. His in-your-face personality is not for the faint-hearted and his gatecrashing of the world of boxing without an invite is sure to sting for a long time.
But there is no denying he has breathed new life into combat sports and piqued the interest of new fans worldwide. With must-see shows and a genuine quest to give fighters better pay, Jake Paul just might be the hero that combat sports deserve … whether they like it or not.
