Demetrious Johnson isn’t impressed with the level of competition Jake Paul has faced in his last two fights.
On Saturday night, Paul extended his professional boxing record to 9-1 with a first-round knockout win against Ryan Bourland. Despite having a 17-3 record, Bourland offered little resistance against ‘The Problem Child,’ as he was quickly battered before the referee was forced to step in.
Paul has changed the trajectory of his fighting career by facing low-level professional boxers instead of retired MMA fighters and celebrities. Although he’s still evolving as a fighter, the lack of skills from his latest opponents has led to backlash from the combat sports community.
MMA legend Demetrious Johnson recently reacted to Paul’s latest win in a video on his YouTube channel and had this to say:
“He [Jake Paul] is evolving, don’t get me wrong. He is evolving, but what are you doing when you’re fighting these guys you find off the street? Like I said before, when he fought Andre August, the gentleman was running pizza routes. Go find somebody who is 25, 26 years old, who Eddie Hearn or somebody can find that’s in the gym, that’s grinding, that’s hungry. Put yourself in the fire. Put yourself against top-level competition to build your credibility.”
Watch Paul’s latest boxing win below:
Jake Paul with another first round KO 😤 pic.twitter.com/zhqgi7R16I
— Happy Punch (@HappyPunch) March 3, 2024
Demetrious Johnson details the difference between Jake Paul fighting professional and non-professional athletes
Jake Paul used to be criticized for fighting retired MMA fighters to benefit from their name value. ‘The Problem Child’ listened to the backlash and decided to fight opponents with more in-ring professional boxing experience. Unfortunately, Paul’s last two wins have failed to impress the general public.
While reacting to Paul’s latest win, Demetrious Johnson had this to say about the opponents he faced at the beginning of his career compared to now:
“Ladies and gentlemen, there is a difference between a professional boxer, a professional athlete, and an amateur. These fights that Jake Paul are doing, the fights that he did against Anderson Silva, Tyron Woodley, Nate Diaz, Tommy Fury, I don’t know if him and Tommy Fury have fought, I don’t know, I can’t keep track.”
Johnson continued:
“He fights all of these random guys, but those fights he fought against professional athletes. Now against Andre August, against Ryan [Bourland], and the basketball player he fought at the beginning, those aren’t professional fights.”
At 27 years old, Jake Paul has continued to ignore the criticism and focus on evolving as a professional boxer. Despite suffering a loss against Tommy Fury, Paul maintains his belief that he will silence the doubters and become a world champion.
Watch Johnson react to Paul’s latest boxing win below:
