If you have been even remotely following the UFC, you know Dana White has got bad blood with the former heavyweight champion, Francis Ngannou. He accused him of being “full of s***” and bad for business, and the ‘Predator’ struck back too on the unfavorable contract terms and the lack of autonomy for the fighters. Now, it seems like Jake Paul has joined the conversation.

Earlier this month, the YouTuber turned Boxer reached out to the ex-UFC fighter after his fight with Gervonta Davis was canceled following the lawsuit filed by his ex-girlfriend. Looking for a replacement, Paul’s team contacted Ngannou, who bluntly turned down the offer, stating, “I’m like, ‘No, bro. Come on. Don’t disrespect me like that.’” Now, Paul is ready to match this insult with one of his own.

Jake Paul calls out Francis Ngannou at the pre-fight presser

Jake Paul is stepping into the ring with Anthony Joshua next month, on December 19, on a Netflix special. Joshua has to be one of the coldest finishers of all time, being a 2x unified heavyweight world champion and Olympic gold medalist. At the pre-fight presser, the focus seemed to be elsewhere, with one reporter citing the incident with Ngannou.

“Yeah, when I go in there and do 10 times, 100 times better than Francis, we’ll see how he feels then. The guy’s a joke, he’s a dumb***, he’s stuck in mud. Francis to me is an easy fight as a boxer, so that’s all we need to talk about with him,” Jake Paul took a sharp dig at the 39-year-old boxer. That’s a bold claim against Ngannou, who is the inaugural PFL Super Fight Heavyweight Champion after defeating Renan Ferreira.

However, Paul isn’t a name to be ignored either. After edging out Mike Tyson only a year earlier via unanimous decision, he proved that he’s more than just another YouTube boxer. But that couldn’t make him what the ‘Predator’ wanted as the next logical step in his career. He simply ruled Paul out, as “He makes no sense for me. He’s not what I’m looking at right now.”

But even Paul’s opponent, Joshua, called out Ngannou for his words without the action to back it up. “With Ngannou, he should be up here. Be about it. Don’t talk about it,” Joshua said.

This beef aligns Paul with Dana White, who has constantly found himself in an unfavorable position with the heavyweight. Recently, White even alleged that Ngannou physically assaulted him and other UFC employees over a bonus disagreement. Ngannou also claimed the UFC owed him money, which White sharply refuted while speaking at the UFC 308 post-fight press conference. He claimed that he nor the UFC never ever been in a situation where they owed someone money.

Clearly, Ngannou is not a favorite inside the UFC. However, Jake Paul has torn him down before, too.

Francis Ngannou slammed for rejecting fight with Jake Paul

After the PFL Heavyweight champion turned down Jake Paul’s offer, the Problem Child took shots at the Predator via X. “Dear Francis – just say you already got humiliated in boxing and are scared to lose to Jake Paul. I accept that. You are light work, my friend. Stuck in mud.”

This may have struck a nerve with Ngannou. “Choose your words wisely, boy. I agree that you need someone to discipline you for what you did to Mike Tyson, but stay in your lane,” Francis Ngannou clapped back.

The Predator’s last boxing match was against Anthony Joshua, which ended in a disappointing 2nd round KO. Now, Paul is taking on the boxing beast, almost like a mocking response to Ngannou rejecting him.

Looking forward to the fight, Jake Paul is looking to be in his prime form. He flaunts a professional boxing record of 12 wins and 1 loss, with his most recent fight against Julio César Chávez Jr. in June 2025. He won the match via unanimous decision and set forth his worth in stone. Paul relies on his powerful strikes, with a preference for KO finishes. In fact, with 7 KO wins, his KO percentage is around 58%. However, against Joshua, we might see him go for a decision win, given the latter’s boxing calibre. What are your thoughts on Jake Paul’s upcoming fight?