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Former UFC light heavyweight champion Vitor Belfort has praised Jake Paul for his journey from a Disney channel and Vine star to one of boxing's biggest draws.
Belfort last appeared for the UFC in 2018 at UFC 244 when he fought fellow veteran Lyoto Machida. 'The Phenom' lost the fight via a vicious front-kick KO in the second round and announced his retirement from MMA soon after.
After three years away from MMA, the 45-year-old surprised fans by announcing that he was going to return to fighting as a boxer. Belfort's first bout was an exhibition against former heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield. The Brazilian stunned fans when he TKO'd the boxing veteran in the first round.
In an interview with Seconds Out, Belfort, who is set to face Hasim Rahmar Jr. later this month, revealed that Jake Paul has earned his respect as a fighter:
"It takes courage man. I know Jake. People, even myself, have criticized him but he's earning his respect. He's training and putting himself there. He's doing some business and he's being successful. I'm very happy to see a YouTuber come from Disney world and literally going to the fight world and boxing world...It's admirable for someone to have that journey...He's got my respect for sure."
Catch Vitor Belfort discussing Jake Paul here:
Joe Rogan was impressed by Jake Paul's performance against Anderson Silva
A mix of MMA and boxing fans tuned in when Jake Paul faced off against UFC legend Anderson Silva on October 29. 'Spider' is a former middleweight champion and is considered by many to be one of the greatest fighters of all time.
The fight went the distance but Paul scored a stunning knockdown on the 47-year-old in the final round. His hand was then raised for a unanimous decision victory. In a recent episode of The Joe Rogan Experience, UFC color commentator Joe Rogan gave his thoughts on the bout.
According to Rogan, 'The Problem Child' is underrated by fans due to his Disney and YouTube background. However, he insists that Paul deserves respect after beating the MMA vet:
“He [Paul] demands respect. He beat Anderson Silva. Knocked him down, it was wild as f*ck… We should point this out, some people are trying to say that fight was fixed because of the knockdown."
The 55-year-old then responded to fans who called the fight a 'fix':
“I just want to explain to people this is what happened… Anderson moved forward to Jake Paul and Jake Paul hit him with a sort of a step-in jab and caught him right on the chin. And when he caught him on the chin, Anderson Silva was falling backward and then he leans away from the right hand and he goes down. He was down from the punch, but it looks like the right-hand doesn’t connect, but the left hand is what f*cking him up."
Catch the JRE episode here:
