Former featherweight champion, Josh Warrington, doesn’t mind the YouTubers earning a chunk of money from the combat world. However, he seems vexed about putting them in a similar column with professional boxers.

‘The Leeds Warrior’ recently lost his unbeaten tag, as he suffered his maiden career loss against Mauricio Lara in February. The 30-year-old now holds a record of 30-1, but is still one of the most treacherous punchers in the 126 lbs division.

Hence, he expressed his dissent on the YouTubers and social media stars labeling themselves as professional boxers. Josh Warrington connected with talkSPORT and addressed several scenarios.

“I don’t think you can do it in any other sport. You can have zero boxing experience but still get a professional licence. Nine times out of ten a fighter will go in front of a board of control, someone from the board will go over to watch them box, ask if they have any amateur experience and go from there,” said Warrington.

He added, “Maybe if they could have another licence and call it an exhibition… you have organisations like the WBC making these phoney belts and it just ridicules the sport.”

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Josh Warrington’s statements could have directly been aimed at Jake Paul, Logan Paul, and other MMA fighters, who have entered the boxing world via exhibition bouts. But will it change anything in the sport?

Despite Josh Warrington’s comments, celebrity boxing is set to stay

Despite all the protests from several elite boxers like Josh Warrington and Canelo Alvarez, social media stars continue to enjoy the glory of combat sports. Jake Paul is now 3-0 and bills himself as an elite. Moreover, ‘The Problem Child’ has expanded his radar to the MMA community.

As he looks forward to facing bigger names next, Paul can grab more attention. He is now rumored to fight Dillon Danis or Tommy Fury next.

Meanwhile, Jake Paul had a skirmish with Daniel Cormier at UFC 261. So, it’s safe to state that the YouTuber is making big moves, even away from the squared circle. Celebrity boxing is clearly bringing a lot of fresh attention to the sport and is here to stay. But admittedly, it has made the professionals take a back seat.

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What do you make of Warrington’s comments?

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