Jake Paul beat Nate Diaz by unanimous decision in their highly-anticipated boxing match in Dallas as he knocked down the mixed martial arts star en route to victory.
Diaz was fighting for the first time since leaving the UFC and proved an awkward opponent on his boxing debut in front of a Texas crowd that was hugely in his favour, although he lacked the power to really hurt his heavily-favoured opponent.
YouTuber Paul knocked him down in the fifth round of their 10-round contest but Diaz got back to his feet and made the final bell. However, the judges’ scorecards showed the relatively one-sided nature of the victory as he prevailed 97-92, 98-91, 98-91.
With his record as a professional boxer now at 7-1, attention turns to Paul’s next contest. He has offered Diaz $10m for a fight under MMA rules, with the former UFC star considering the offer, while a rematch to avenge his sole loss earlier this year against Tommy Fury – half-brother of world heavyweight boxing champion Tyson – could also be a possibility.
‘Boo if you’re a virgin’: Jake Paul mocks crowd after beating Nate Diaz
YouTube star Jake Paul mocked the Dallas crowd as he was loudly booed after beating UFC star Nate Diaz in their highly-anticipated crossover boxing fight.
Diaz was far and away the crowd favourite in Texas as Paul – who happily played the role of villain in the lead-up to the fight – was booed on his way to the ring, faced audible chants of ‘f*** Jake Paul’ throughout the fight and then continued to be jeered after his hand was raised in victory.
The 26-year-old hit back at the American Airlines Center crowd during his post-fight interview however, as he cupped his hand to his ear amid the boos and stopped mid-answer to mock the supporters by saying “boo if you’re a virgin” before laughing sarcastically to himself.
“He’s tough, he’s real tough, that’s what he’s known for but tough in this sport doesn’t work,” began Paul, in reference to his opponent. And as the boos heightened, he continued “Boo if you’re a virgin. Ha. Haha.”
Jake Paul spends a lot of his time being insincere, to devastating effect. Alex Pattle tries to find the man behind the mocking
Megan Sheets6 August 2023 22:00
Full card results
Jake Paul bt Nate Diaz
Amanda Serrano bt Heather Hardy
Shadasia Green bt Olivia Curry
Ashton Sylve bt William Silva
Alan Sanchez bt Angel Beltran Villa
Kevin Newman II bt Quilisto Madera
Chris Avila bt Jeremy Stephens
Jose Aguayo bt Noel Cavazos
Luciano Ramos bt Cee Jay Hamilton
Megan Sheets6 August 2023 20:00
RECAP: What happened in each round?
Here’s a recap of Mike Jones’ analysis from each round:
Round One: This showdown is a 10 round affair. Jake Paul has never had a match last as long. He’s promised to knockout Nate Diaz tonight but that seems like a difficult ask.
Diaz is a southpaw which could play into Paul’s favour. Paul dances around the ring and looks for a couple of jabs but Diaz evades easily enough.
A big left hook from Paul catches Diaz and Paul presses the advantage. Paul gets him on the chin again and Diaz is rocking. Paul lands a combo but Diaz struggles to clinch.
Diaz is unsteady and it’s not looking good for him already. What a start for Jake Paul.
Paul pins him with another left hook. Diaz’s hooks are wild, he doesn’t look all that comfortable.
Round Two: There’s work being done on Diaz’s right eye after that blast from Jake Paul. He hurt Diaz with that left hooked and it took a while for Diaz to react.
Diaz needs to clinch more and use his weight against Paul. Diaz works the inside and gets a couple of uppercuts on the chin. A jab to the head and right hand to the body brings Paul some joy.
His right eye doesn’t look good at all but this is a better round from Diaz who ends it with a nice left hook.
Round Three: Diaz is just walking to get himself into range and Paul isn’t responding to that. He lands a nice uppercut but Diaz seems to have settled into this fight.
A left hook lands from Paul but Diaz responds in kind. The two boxers clash heads before Paul pins Diaz through the guard.
Diaz has raised his arms in celebration after each round. If anything he’s enjoying himself out there.
Round Four: Jake Paul starts the fourth with a little dance before coming straight in for the clinch. He gets a jab to land on Diaz’s swelling eye.
The jab is a vital tactics here, if Paul lands it more often Diaz will start to get worried. Diaz comes forward with volume and pile some pressure on Paul with a few uppercuts and short hooks.
Diaz clatters Paul on the chin with two left hooks. The punches aren’t knockout blows but it’s encouraging for Diaz. He’s taking that round.
Round Five: Can Diaz build on the last round?
Paul starts off the fifth as the aggressor and does a good job of pinning Diaz with an uppercut. Diaz is trying to regain some stamina. He’s backing off and backing off but that allows Jake Paul an opening.
He smokes Diaz with a left hook and knocks him down! Diaz is down with a minute to go in the round.
Paul goes in for the kill as Diaz gets back on his feet. Diaz is rocked but a right hand and the legs start to go again. Diaz gets a couple of counters to land and he tries to end the round on a high.
Paul doesn’t get the knockout but he takes the round easily.
Round Six: Paul almost skips back into the middle of the ring for round six. He senses that the knockout is here. A one-two down the middle is good but there’s a flurry from Diaz in response, some land, most don’t.
Diaz tries to get himself into range as Paul tries to pin him with a right hook.
Round Seven: Nate Diaz may be hoping that he can earn his rewards in the latter rounds if he can keep Jake Paul at bay until then. Paul lands his right and beats the guard but only manages a glancing blow.
Diaz has been busy inside the pocket but Paul gets a left hook to land and follows up with the right uppercut. Another big right pins Diaz but Paul is starting to look tired.
Diaz raises his arms once again. That was a tough round to call.
Round Eight: Nate Diaz’s corner have told to not let Jake Paul win another round. This is the time they’ve been waiting for but it’s Paul who comes out with the three hit combo early on.
There doesn’t seem to be any power left in Paul’s arm. If Diaz can get the opening he could work Paul over. A short right get Diaz on the chin but he’s the one pushing forward. A couple of uppercuts land for Diaz.
Diaz hits Paul on the chin and looks to have rocked The Problem Child. Before he can push through the advantage the bell goes to end the round.
These next two rounds are going to be interesting.
Round Nine: Nate Diaz is mocking Jake Paul now but Paul is up on the cards and won’t mind taking time out of the round. Paul is sticking behind his jab and trying to keep Diaz at a distance.
Paul throws a combo, then retreats, throws a combo, then retreats again. Good boxing.
Diaz needs to keep boxing, he’s trying to draw Paul in but he’s not interested in going toe-to-toe. Diaz finishes with a flourish and catches Paul with a right hook.
Diaz may just have clinched the round but it’s too close to call. One round to go.
Round 10: Nate Diaz continues to showboat and gets pinned on the chin by a left-right combo. Paul looks to have a bit more in the tank and targets the body.
Diaz looks slightly disappointed in Jake Paul. He goes on the attack and rocks Paul who grabs hold in a clinch to stop the wobble.
The whistle comes and this one is going to go to a decision. The knockdown for Paul could prove crucial here.
Megan Sheets6 August 2023 19:00
Fan brawls break out after fight
Multiple clips circulated on social media showed spectators at Saturday’s event brawling with each other following the fight.
Megan Sheets6 August 2023 18:00
Will Diaz agree to rematch?
Diaz hinted that he’s open to Paul’s offer for an MMA rematch during the post-fight press conference.
“Right now we’re going to go home and we’re going to talk about it,” he said, “and we’re going to figure out whether we want to do MMA or boxing, and then we’ll see what they want to do.
“They said they wanted to do the PFL thing, and I think that if we want to do that, we’re going to have to co-promote and do Real Fight vs. PFL, and I’m with that. But my goal is to get a rematch in any art.
“We’re going to see what happens with him, see if he really wants to do that. If not, I’ll be back in this hunting him down too. Either way is fine with me.”
Megan Sheets6 August 2023 17:00
Diaz says Paul ‘can’t really fight’
Nate Diaz had some harsh words for his opponent Jake Paul after losing on Saturday night.
At a post-game press conference, Diaz said Paul “can’t really fight”.
“I’m not trying to f*****g talk s**t. He’s boxing high-level MMA guys and he’s sparring hard and working with good people, and then he starts talking s*** to me throughout the camp,” Diaz said of Paul.
“It comes with the territory and all is fair, love and war, I’m always about that. Say whatever you want, that’s fine. But then when you start making things personal, trying to make things personal, saying s**t he shouldn’t be saying, it hurts people’s feelings when I say this ain’t a real fight.
“Because if it’s a real fight, remember Logan Paul in New Orleans? No problem. This is not a real fight to be talking to me like that. This is a boxing competition. So that’s what I meant by he can’t really fight. It’s not overly disrespectful.
“If you can’t really fight, don’t be talking s**t.”
Megan Sheets6 August 2023 16:00
Jake Paul re-ups call for $10m rematch
After beating Nate Diaz in Saturday night’s boxing bout, Jake Paul re-upped his rematch challenge.
Paul wants to face his rival in the MMA arena - with a $10m price tag attached.
Diaz previously dismissed the idea. But in his post-fight interview on Saturday, he appeared open to the possibility.
Megan Sheets6 August 2023 15:12
‘Boo if you’re a virgin’: Jake Paul mocks crowd after beating Nate Diaz
YouTube star Jake Paul mocked the Dallas crowd as he was loudly booed after beating UFC star Nate Diaz in their highly-anticipated crossover boxing fight.
Diaz was far and away the crowd favourite in Texas as Paul – who happily played the role of villain in the lead-up to the fight – was booed on his way to the ring, faced audible chants of ‘f*** Jake Paul’ throughout the fight and then continued to be jeered after his hand was raised in victory.
The 26-year-old hit back at the American Airlines Center crowd during his post-fight interview however, as he cupped his hand to his ear amid the boos and stopped mid-answer to mock the supporters by saying “boo if you’re a virgin” before laughing sarcastically to himself.
“He’s tough, he’s real tough, that’s what he’s known for but tough in this sport doesn’t work,” began Paul, in reference to his opponent. And as the boos heightened, he continued “Boo if you’re a virgin. Ha. Haha.”
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