Ben Askren will have no problem finding motivation in training for his upcoming fight.
The former UFC welterweight is set to return to action on April 17 when he takes on Jake Paul in an eight-round boxing match.
Although many in the combat sports world — as well as oddsmakers — are favoring Paul, Askren remains confident of getting the victory as he’s even predicted a seventh-round TKO of the popular YouTuber.
“TKO, round seven,” Askren said. “Because I don’t have a huge amount of power. It’s going to take me some time to wear him down and make him hate his life.
“And then eventually, he’ll say, ‘look, I’m a rich celebrity. I don’t need to get f*cking punched anymore. I’m just going to roll over.’”
Askren Gets A Surprise
Askren will have little trouble visualizing the punches he will land as he was surprised with a special gift of a customized punching bag that features a photo Paul posted of his broken nose leading up to his fight with Nate Robinson.
You can watch Askren unveil the punching bag below:
My man @realdanlasavage had an awesome surprise for me this morning when I stopped in to pick up gear at @combatcrnr !!! @jakepaul @triller pic.twitter.com/Zm1Lk9aYp7
— Funky (@Benaskren) February 1, 2021
“Oh my god, this is glorious,” Askren said. “I’m going to hang this up in the academy and the kids are going to go nuts.”
Hopefully, Askren uses it to good effect as it’s no secret that his striking is well below the average standard of a combat sports athlete.
Whether it’s still enough to defeat a YouTuber-turned-boxer? We’ll just have to wait and find out.
