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Jake Paul has been making news in the combat sports world recently, following his debut as a professional boxer. Despite fighting a YouTuber and a former basketball player, Paul seemed confident in calling out professional fighters. The interesting thing to note is that Jake Paul has only ever called out MMA fighters, primarily those who are wrestlers and grapplers; he hasn't once called out a professional boxer. This is perhaps because Paul knows there's a big difference between MMA and boxing, and he doesn't stand a chance against a professional boxer.
That said, Jake Paul has achieved notoriety following his first-round knockout of former UFC fighter Ben Askren. 'Funky' has never been known for his striking, and while the MMA community rallied behind him in full support, no one was too shocked with the outcome of the fight. But there were many who felt like it was either a bad stoppage or a scripted fight.
Nonetheless, Jake Paul can now say he's has beaten a former professional fighter. Paul trained with UFC fighter Jorge Masvidal in the lead up to the Askren fight and has been trying to call out Nate Diaz since then. 'The Problem Child' was on the receiving end of Diaz's wrath on Twitter after Paul did some ridiculous antics to garner Conor McGregor's attention.
A few weeks ago, Nate Diaz admitted he'd be open to a boxing bout against Jake Paul. After the win against Ben Askren, Jake Paul claimed he'd knock Diaz out in three rounds.
Sure, Paul is on a high after outboxing one of the worst strikers in MMA history, but Nate Diaz isn't Ben Askren. While Diaz is a black belt in jiu-jitsu, he could very well shut the lid on Jake Paul in a boxing bout.
5 reasons why Nate Diaz will dominate Jake Paul in a boxing match:
#5 Experience
Nate Diaz is a fighting veteran. 'The Stockton Slugger' has 32 professional fights under his belt and has been training in mixed martial arts since the age of eleven. He regularly trains with his brother, former Strikeforce, WEC, and IFC welterweight champion Nick Diaz.
Nate Diaz won season five of 'The Ultimate Fighter' and has since gone on to beat some of the best names in the UFC. Most notably, he was the one to end Conor McGregor's 15-fight win streak when he faced 'Notorious' on thirteen days notice at UFC 196.
Compare this with Jake Paul's shoddy record of three fights against non-boxers, and it's almost insulting to talk about the two in the same sentence.
#4 Conditioning
The Diaz brothers are as tough as they come. Nate Diaz has one of the best chins in the UFC, along with some of the fastest recovery abilities in the fight game. He has a prominent scar tissue above his eye that tends to open up rather easily, but it has never seemed to slow Diaz down. Having faced and beaten strikers like Conor McGregor, Anthony Pettis and Michael Johnson, it's safe to say that Nate Diaz's conditioning is extremely impressive.
He has also shown he can go five rounds in an MMA fight with ease. Not to mention, MMA doesn't allow for a ten-count like boxing to let a fighter regain their composure. With such guaranteed recovery time, Nate Diaz will be raring to go in every single round of a boxing bout.
#3 Attitude
This one can be talked about for days. Nate Diaz and his brother Nick Diaz have been known for their brash attitude, but we'd like to focus on their attitude towards competition and the fight game. The Diaz brothers are excellent fighters, but also extremely competitive sportsmen.
If Jake Paul tries to bog down or bully Nate Diaz in the build-up to a potential fight, it's only going to fuel Diaz further to go on and do his best. Nate Diaz is no stranger to trash-talk, and he's shown in the past what happens when an opponent tries to anger him and get inside his head. Ben Askren may have taken the bout lightly, but if Nate Diaz signs up for a fight, he will come out all guns blazing.
#2 Ability
Nate Diaz ranks number four for most submission wins in the UFC owing to his black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, but 'The Stockton Slugger' is a very formidable boxer. Having trained with Richard Perez for a long time, Diaz is no stranger to the mitts.
He even outboxed a prime Michael Johnson, one of the best strikers we've seen in recent UFC history. Conor McGregor also revealed in an interview that the only fighter to make him feel a punch was Nate Diaz. Safe to say, Jake Paul hasn't faced a hitter like Nate Diaz. Then again, Jake Paul hasn't even faced a half-decent boxer so far.
#1 Legacy
Nate Diaz has been competing professionally since 2004. He has had more fights than Jake Paul has had birthdays. Naturally, then, he would have a lot more to lose if a potential boxing bout with Jake Paul went badly.
Jake Paul is a Youtuber who, along with his brother Logan Paul, has achieved internet celebrity status over the last few years. While the Paul brothers may think they are fighters, Nate Diaz is an actual professional fighter and the sport is his primary source of livelihood.
He has spent most of his life training, competing, and building a legacy in fighting. Askren may have been competing for kicks, but Nate Diaz isn't going to risk denting his legacy in any way by losing a boxing bout against a YouTuber.
Whether this fight happens or not, we don't know. We do know that we won't be seeing Nate Diaz hand Jake Paul some 'Stockton Slaps' since boxing gloves don't allow for open palms. Then again, if Diaz's scar tissue opens up during the bout and the referee deems the fight over there's not much we can do.
We do know that it would be great to watch Jake Paul fight an actual boxer, or face an MMA fighter inside an octagon.
