Jake Paul has thrown out a challenge to who he wants to face in his next boxing match: former UFC double champion Daniel Cormier.
Frankly, it’s hard to know when to take Jake Paul seriously or consider his behavior to be pure trolling. So when he called out retired UFC legend Daniel Cormier, someone who is multiple weight classes larger than him, it’s easy to write off the challenge as attention-seeking or random social-media tomfoolery. But what does make this situation undoubtedly a serious matter is how Cormier has addressed Paul and one of Paul’s team members. Because it’s quite clear that the Lafayette native was not playing any games.
Paul Challenges Cormier To Fight After Social Media Dispute
After a video surfaced of Jake Paul’s team member J’Leon Love being involved in a verbal confrontation with Tyron Woodley, Cormier took issue with Love’s behavior in the video, tweeting:
“I mean, the way this dude talked to T-Wood makes my skin crawl. All these kids are going to get taught a lesson I swear. And I can’t wait for it, @JLeonLove you can’t fight. Better respect dudes like @TWoodley before he puts his hands on you. He ain’t Ben!”
It would seem “Funky” Ben Askren was an unintended casualty of Cormier’s warning shot to Love. Nevertheless, Jake Paul would reply to this tweet, inviting both Cormier and Woodley to prove just how different they are from Askren.
“Okay fat boy. So me vs you & J vs. T.??” Paul wrote on Twitter.
Cormier Responds To Jake Paul’s Challenge
On ESPN’s DC & Helwani episode on Monday, Cormier issued an all-business shutdown of Jake Paul’s offer.
“I’m not gonna punch down to some kid on YouTube that’s like, ‘Fight me.’ Why? What have you done to earn the right to fight me?” Cormier asked. “So no, it’s stilly and stupid.”
Cormier would then take his ESPN platform as an opportunity to reiterate who he would like to see as Paul’s next opponent.
“I would like him to fight Tyron,” Cormier offered. “I would like to see him fight somebody more real. Don’t fight Ben Askren at 190 (pounds) bloated.”
Once again, Ben Askren just happened to be a casualty in Cormier’s verbal discharge in the former champion’s effort to get a larger point across, which is that Paul should face a more difficult opponent in terms of striking acumen. Cormier also threw out the name of longtime AKA teammate Luke Rockhold as a potential opponent for the YouTube personality. Whoever it is that Paul ultimately faces next, you can safely rule out the possibility of it being Daniel Cormier.
What are your thoughts on this unlikely exchange between Jake Paul and Daniel Cormier?
