Jake Paul’s next fight was sort of a shocker.
Paul vs. August
From NBA stars to UFC Champions, ‘The Problem Child’ has faced many big names early on in his boxing career. But, Paul has changed his tune a bit by picking not-so-popular pro boxer Andre August as his upcoming adversary.
After defeating Nate Diaz in his last outing, many fans expected Paul to keep on taking cross-over fights, perhaps this time with heated rival KSI. However, that’s not happening anytime soon as the 26 year-old looks to go the more traditional boxing route. That starts on December 15th in Orlando, Florida.
“There’s a lot of reasons [why I’m fighting August], but it’s mostly for me, for my experience, my road to world championship and to grow inside the squared circle, those four corners, and to get the time under my belts,” Paul explained on The MMA Hour. “I think people, when I said I wanted to become world champion, thought it was just some gimmick or that I was just like saying it to sell more fights or to like gain people’s attention. When I said it, I actually meant it.
“This is me acting like a boxing prospect. It’s me building my experience in the ring, taking challenges and staying sharp in camp, working, working, working. This is the time I need to be able to get to that level of being the best in the world. That’s where I’m going to be and that’s where I have my mindset on. It’s my biggest goal, and this is the path to get there. It’s no longer about business and making all this money. I’ve already generated, you know, 250 million, $200 million in pay-per-view sales. We’ve done that. Great. Congratulations. This is about real boxing now.”
‘I’m On A War Path’
With ‘real boxing’ in his line of sight, Paul still isn’t shutting the door completely on crossover fights. But, those can wait as Paul carries on to build his game.
“I think there’s still some names that need to be taken care of like Tommy Fury or KSI, for example. Nate Diaz has ducked me in MMA… those things still excite me, but I’m not waiting around for anyone or anything. I’m gonna get to my goal regardless. If we wanna make those other crossover fights happen at some point, then it could fit into the schedule. But for right now, I’m on a war path. Nothing can stop me. Tunnel vision, straightforward and taking these fights now to grow that experience.”
“For me, this is about signing myself up to more fights to stay sharp and to continue to grow.”
Paul’s Take On August
Whether you’ve heard of him or not, it’s no secret that Andre August will be Jake Paul’s biggest test to date. The pro boxer has a record of 10-1, with five of those wins coming by KO.
While Paul has a lot to lose in this one, he is excited for the challenge at hand.
“I think he first and foremost has a great record,” Paul said of August. “It’s a good stylistic matchup. I think it’s gonna be an entertaining fight for the fans. He’s a beast. He’s a dog, he’s strong. He’s got that Tyron Woodley frame of just being a dog coming forward. I wanted someone with 10 wins or more and few to no losses.
“He brings excitement to the match. He’s got more knockouts than me, more experience than me. He has one punch knockout power. He’s dropped opponents with his left hand. It’s interesting and it is a challenge. I have another man out there who could take everything away from me that isn’t a big name. So, it requires me to be sharp and on my P’s and Q’s every single day when I wake up in the morning.”
