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Raush Manfio, who has been sparring with Jake Paul in preparation for Paul's upcoming fight, has never competed in the UFC. However, the professional MMA athlete fights in the lightweight division of Titan FC and holds a record of 11-3.
Manfio has lent a helping hand to Jake Paul leading up to his boxing match with former Bellator and ONE welterweight champion Ben Askren. Judging by what he has witnessed in the ring while sparring Jake Paul, Manfio believes that Askren stands no chance against the YouTuber turned pro boxer.
The two combatants will be trading blows in the ring on April 17th, according to an announcement made by Paul on Twitter. Jake boasts a record of 2-0 as a pro-boxer, even though both of his victories have come against non-boxers.
If victorious, Jake Paul will have defeated an Olympic level wrestler and a former UFC fighter. This will certainly stamp his authority in the world of boxing as a dominant fighter. His new sparring partner, Raush Manfio, stated that Paul possesses knockout power and if unintimidated by Askren's resume, he might secure victory come April 17th.
In a recent interview with MMA Fighting, Raush Manfio mentioned his encounter with the younger of the Paul brothers. Manfio got paid $150 per session in order to help Paul for his training camp.
“I believe Ben Askren can take a punch, but Jake Paul has knockout power,” he said. “If Askren goes in there to trade hands, he’s going down. No doubt. He’s going down. [Paul] has a powerful right hand, and he’s getting smarter in the ring, not getting scared or stuff like that, things you learn with time. I’m a professional MMA fighter since 2011 and I get mature as time goes by, you understand the sport, but [Paul] has firepower and that’s crucial", said Raush Manfio
Raush Manfio is a free agent in MMA and has not fought since 2018 when he lost his Titan FC lightweight belt to Sidney Outlaw.
Ben Askren is not planning on knocking out Jake Paul
While he was competing against the elite strikers in MMA, Ben Askren's striking was not the best weapon in his arsenal. Instead, Askren was known for the relentless pressure he imposed on his opponents, courtesy of his 'Funky' American freestyle wrestling.
In an interview with Ariel Helwani, Askren mentioned that he has a chin that has been tested against the best strikers in MMA. Ergo, 'Funky' is not worried about getting hit by Jake's punches on April 17th. Askren is planning on wearing down Jake Paul with persistent volume-striking until the YouTuber finally gives up.
“Yeah, because I don’t have a huge amount of power. So, it’d take me some time to wear him down and make him hate his life. And then, you know, eventually, he’ll just say look, ‘I’m a rich celebrity. I don’t need to get f**king punched anymore. I’m just gonna roll over’.”
