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Jake Paul Set to Face Former UFC Fighter in 8-Round Boxing Match: Report

Jake Paul has his next opponent. The YouTube star is set to face off against former UFC fighter Ben Askren in a pro boxing match this spring. Both Paul and Askren will fight eight rounds in the 185-190 pound range.

Paul is moving up in the boxing world. This time he will face an actual professional fighter and contender. Previously, the YouTube star fought fellow YouTube star AnEsonGib (real name Ali Eson Gib). That fight ended in a first-round TKO. Paul then knocked out former NBA athlete Nate Robinson during the second round of their November match-up. The YouTube star first made his boxing debut in January 2020.

“Ben Askren is a two-time NCAA champion, a world champion in two different global mixed martial arts organizations and has less losses on his record than Conor McGregor,” Paul told ESPN. “Me, on the other hand, I started boxing two years ago and I’m still going to knock his a– out faster than [Jorge] Masvidal. These MMA guys think because they throw punches they know how to box.”

Paul boasted that he was finally taking on a real fighter to silence his doubters. The fight will take place on April 17 under the Triller Fight Club banner. It will be the main event fight. The location is still to be determined.

“The world complained because I knocked out a basketball player and not a real fighter,” Paul continued. “So now I’m giving the people what they want by taking on a ‘real fighter.’ After Ben Askren is added to my knockout meme collection, what can anybody say? Thank you to Triller Fight Club for giving me the platform to once again put a man to sleep. April 17, it’s lights out for Askren.”

Ben Askren Calls Jake Paul Out

The full card for the event also hasn’t been revealed. The fight will include ten-ounce gloves in a 20 by 20 ring. While it will be Askren’s first boxing match, he called out Jake Paul as a pretender. He said he looks forward to teaching the social media personality what a real fighter can do.

“I know Jake Paul is enjoying pretending he is a fighter,” Askren said. “I think on April 17 he is going to have a rude awakening to what being a fighter is really like. Jake has led a privileged life and doesn’t really know what the meaning of being a fighter is. I’m going to put his dreams to an end.”

Askren retired from the UFC in 2020 due to an injury. He had to have hip replacement surgery. But before his retirement, Askren was a two-time NCAA wrestling champion, a 2008 Olympian, and a two-time Dan Hodge Trophy winner among other things.

He had a 19-0 record until 2019 when he got knocked out in under five seconds. His last fight was a loss to Demian Maia in Oct. 2019.