YouTube star Jake Paul earned the biggest win of his boxing career on Saturday night, defeating former ONE and Bellator welterweight champion Ben Askren via first-round TKO. And now, “The Problem Child” is backing out of a proposed wrestling match with “Funky.”
Last week, Paul (3-0 boxing) confirmed to the media that he and Askren were going to wrestle after their boxing match. The contest would have given Askren a chance to compete in something that he’s highly experienced at, unlike boxing. He’s a world-class wrestler who competed in the 2008 Olympics and used his grappling to earn a 19-2 MMA record.
But Paul is no longer willing to grapple Funky.
GettyJake Paul, left, boxes Ben Askren in their cruiserweight bout during Triller Fight Club at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on April 17, 2021, in Atlanta, Georgia.
Askren spoke with ESPN‘s Ariel Helwani on Monday, April 19, and said he still believes Paul is a “s*** person.” He made several other comments about Paul during the interview, as well as his “gross cheerleading” squad, referring to Paul’s team.
Early Wednesday, not taking kindly to Askren’s continued jabs, Paul tweeted, “I doubled Ben Askrens Instagram following within 3 months. Made him the biggest pay day of his life KO’d him in 1 minute And this douchebag still talking s***. Isn’t life funny?
“What I love about power is having the ability to put people on and choosing not to,” he continued. “Ben and I were supposed to have a wrestling PPV match after their fight which would have easily generated millions of dollars. Im choosing not to do it anymore because he’s a f****** loser.”
What I love about power is having the ability to put people on and choosing not to.
Ben and I were supposed to have a wrestling PPV match after their fight which would have easily generated millions of dollars
Im choosing not to do it anymore because he’s a fucking loser
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Paul Has Won Every Boxing Bout He’s Competed in Via Finish
On Tuesday night, Paul tweeted about the punching power he has displayed in the ring. One of the topics going around the fight community is that Askren was able to take devastating blows from former UFC welterweight king Robbie Lawler but was finished by Paul in the first round of their match.
“‘Ben Askren been hit by actual murders with 4oz gloves… Jake Paul can’t do shit with 10oz gloves’ LET IT SINK IN,” Paul wrote.
“Ben Askren been hit by actual murders with 4oz gloves… Jake Paul can’t do shit with 10oz gloves”
LET IT SINK IN
The Problem Child has competed inside the boxing ring four times, once as an amateur and three times with a professional license. And he’s left each time with a KO/TKO victory.
He boxed fellow YouTuber Deji in his first-ever bout, defeating the Brit via fifth-round TKO. He then took out another content creator, AnEsonGib, by first-round TKO, winning his first pro fight.
In November, The Problem Child knocked out NBA point guard Nate Robinson in the second round, and on Saturday, he finished Askren in the first.
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Askren Suffered His Third Loss in a Row as a Combat Sports Athlete
GettyJake Paul and Ben Askren met on Saturday, April 17, 2021.
Funky built his MMA career by using his dominating wrestling to control his opponents. He entered the UFC’s Octagon as an 18-0 fighter and defeated Lawler in his promotional debut in 2019. That would be the last time Askren got his hand raised.
In his next fight, he was knocked out in five seconds by Jorge Masvidal. Then, he was submitted via third-round rear-naked choke by Demian Maia, retiring from the sport. And on Saturday night, he suffered his third loss in combat sports, losing to Paul in their boxing match.
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Jake Paul Backs Out of Match With UFC Star: ‘F****** Loser’