Jake Paul is among the pioneers of and the most successful example of the recent fad of celebrity boxing. The former Disney and YouTube star makes more than most boxing champions for his fights against former MMA fighters and other celebrity boxers like Tommy Fury.

One of the most important factors behind this is The Problem Child’s incredible sense of marketing and promotion which has kept him relevant. Paul is perhaps the most decisive figure in the combat sports community, with most fans and analysts objecting to him hand-picking opponents, others have commended him for bringing in a new audience to the sport and his ability to generate quite respectable PPV numbers. However, former UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman is totally against the idea of him boxing Mike Tyson and felt it would be very damaging for Paul’s reputation.

Usman advises Jake Paul against fighting Mike Tyson

Jake Paul announced earlier this month that he would be fighting 57-year-old Mike Tyson on July 20, 2024, at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas which would be available for streaming on Netflix. This has elicited widespread outrage from combat sports fans, with even his erstwhile defenders questioning the move.

Tyson retired nearly two decades ago in 2005 and although he fought Roy Jones Jr. in an exhibition in 2020, he suffers from quite serious health issues. Paul, on the other hand, is three decades younger and in his athletic prime which is why the fight is being seen as a mismatch and a pure money grab.

Among these critics is former UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman who, on his ‘Pound 4 Pound’ podcast with former two-division champion and Olympic gold medallist Henry Cejudo revealed why he was opposed to the bout.

While Usman felt taking the fight was probably a good idea for Tyson because of the substantial amount of money he would undoubtedly make and he was sure that the former boxer could punch and knew how to box, this was not good for Jake Paul’s prospects and would cause him not to be taken seriously and get a chance to fight the likes of ‘Canelo’ Alvarez.

“Uncle Mike wants to do it, Uncle Mike definitely can do it and we know like he can he can definitely still punch, he can definitely still box. But for Jake Paul, a guy that says he wants to be taken serious, he wants to fight Canelo [Alvarez], he wants to fight the best in boxing, this is not the way to do it,” he said.

Usman warns Tyson bout a lose-lose for Paul

Kamaru Usman felt that this was a deliberate choice Jake Paul was making to cash in on Mike Tyson’s popularity since he is perhaps the most famous boxer alive. The former UFC champion pointed out that if the California native had wanted to become a serious boxer, he could do so by fighting another serious contender.

Usman concluded that regardless of the outcome, the fight would be a ‘lose-lose’ prospect for Paul as he wouldn’t get any credit for beating the 57-year-old, while a loss would hurt his career, perhaps irreparably.

“There’s guys that are youthful that are in the rankings that are still contenders that you can fight but you choose to bypass those guys because you want a big name… So this is a lose-lose for Jake Paul… if I was the one advising you I would tell advise against this,” ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ added.

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