Jake Paul is not only guaranteeing victory over Nate Diaz, he’s guaranteeing a knockout.
On Aug. 5 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Paul faces Diaz in their long-awaited boxing match. It’s Diaz’s first fight since leaving the UFC, and the former Disney Channel star predicts the octagon star is in for a world of hurt in his boxing debut.
“I have the biggest chip on my shoulder, the biggest chip on both shoulders, coming back with a vengeance, refilled with that hunger that I had in the beginning of the sport to prove to people what I was capable of,” Paul told TMZ Sports. “The lion lost, I retreated back into the jungle, I took notes of everything, I got better, I trained, and now this lion is going to come out and maul this dude.
“He’s going to have to pay for all this hard work, all the sacrifice I’ve made during this camp. I promise, I’m going to be the first person to stop him on Aug. 5. 100 percent, he’s going to sleep.”
While Diaz has been stopped before in MMA, he’s never been knocked out cold, and Paul’s boxing career thus far has been defined by brutal finishes of former MMA fighters, including Ben Askren and Tyron Woodley. Most recently, though, Paul suffered his first boxing defeat, losing a split decision to Tommy Fury in their grudge match in February.
Paul said that loss made him a better fighter and come August, Diaz is in for a rude awakening.
“I’m going to let my actions do the talking,” he said. “When he gets in there with me, and he sees my speed, my power, my skill, and he can’t hit me, that is going to frustrate him. In that moment he’ll know that he f***** up, and he’s about to get embarrassed, and there’s a difference between UFC champion and a boxer, a very skilled boxer in myself. My fists are going to do all the talking.”
After that’s done and Paul is back on the winning track, “The Problem Child” said a rematch with Tommy Fury could be in the offing.
“It’s not really on my mind,” Paul said of the Fury rematch. “I want to get through Aug. 5. Obviously I want the Tommy rematch, there’s KSI, more and more names are going to pop up as I move up with my skill, but we’re just going to take care of Nate on Aug. 5, tuck him in real nice, put him to sleep, and see what happens after that.”
