The rumors that had been swirling for weeks are now official, as former UFC fighter, Ben Askren has agreed to box social media personality turned boxer Jake Paul in an 8 round bout scheduled for April 17th.
The controversial Paul brothers have been the talk of the combat sports world since entering the space in 2019. Jake was last seen knocking out former-NBA player Nate Robinson in late November. While Askren, the former Bellator champion, is known entirely as a wrestler, so it will be interesting to see him be forced out of his element into a boxing only environment.
When asked about the matchup, Askren dismissed Paul as a privileged spoiled brat, in a comment he made to ESPN.
"I know Jake Paul is enjoying pretending he is a fighter," Askren said. (h/t ESPN). "I think on April 17 he is going to have a rude awakening to what being a fighter is really like. Jake has led a privileged life and doesn't really know what the meaning of being a fighter is. I'm going to put his dreams to an end."
Paul in contrast mocked Askren for losing to Jorge Masvidal in record time, but also noted that Conor McGregor has lost more than Askren has.
"Ben Askren is a two-time NCAA champion, a world champion in two different global mixed martial arts organizations and has less losses on his record than Conor McGregor," Paul said.
"Me, on the other hand, I started boxing two years ago and I'm still going to knock his ass out faster than [Jorge] Masvidal. These MMA guys think because they throw punches they know how to box. The world complained because I knocked out a basketball player and not a real fighter. So now I'm giving the people what they want by taking on a 'real fighter.' After Ben Askren is added to my knockout meme collection, what can anybody say? Thank you to Triller Fight Club for giving me the platform to once again put a man to sleep. April 17, it's lights out for Askren."
Jake Paul will fight Ben Askren in an eight-round pro boxing match on April 17, per Triller founder Ryan Kavanaugh. The fight will serve as the main event of the next Triller Fight Club card. Location TBD.
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) January 26, 2021
Done deal.
It’s official--. April 17th. @triller Fight Club. pic.twitter.com/eYcaTOJhlt
— Jake Paul (@jakepaul) January 26, 2021
Its cute that Jake thinks he is a real fighter, Im gonna beat him up April 17 https://t.co/XcsJ8WhmR3
— Funky (@Benaskren) January 26, 2021
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