Israel Adesanya is rooting for Jake Paul to beat Anderson Silva.
Israel Adesanya wants to see Jake Paul ‘shake up the world’ with a win over UFC legend and former middleweight champion Anderson Silva on Saturday in Arizona.
Having shared the cage with Silva, 47, in the past, New Zealand-based and Nigerian-born Adesanya believes 5-0 YouTube boxer Paul has what it takes to defeat ‘The Spider’ but warned that the latter is not to be overlooked despite his age.
Current UFC middleweight champ and UFC men’s pound-for-pound No. 2 Adesanya has been rooting for ‘The Problem Child’ since his knockout of ex-NBA star Nate Robinson in 2020 and wants to see him shock the world again on Saturday.
“I’m gonna be honest, he’s a tough fight, but I said this to you at your house after your Nate Robinson fight and I was just like, ‘Man, you’re a crazy motherf*****,’” Adesanya told Paul on BS w/ Jake Paul (h/t MMA Fighting). “And I still maintain that. You’re a crazy motherf*****. So, you even getting this fight happening it’s something that is gonna go down in history and you can get it done. Silva can be beat. This is boxing as well, it’s not MMA, he is getting older, I don’t really think that plays a factor as everyone is saying. Don’t f****** believe the hype just cause he’s 42 or whatever. He’s a different kind of 42-year-old. I think you can get it done, but do not f****** sleep on Silva [otherwise] it’s gonna be a bad night. I wanna see you shake up the world, it’s fun to see you just throw your s*** everywhere (laughs).”
“You gotta be careful, man,” Adesanya added. “I told Logan [Paul], if you take this fight, take it seriously because he’s no joke. Silva is the master, he’s a mastermind, man. It comes to the level of even the way he talks, the way he speaks to you when you meet him. He’s a friendly guy, I love Silva. He’s cool and he’s a humble, genuine dude as well. But when it comes to war, he’s a savage.
“He’s from the streets, bro. You gotta remember this guy’s from the streets and the favelas, he don’t give a f***.”
Paul holds previous knockout victories over former MMA champions Ben Askren and Tyron Woodley but Silva represents his toughest test to date and could challenge Paul in ways his last two opponents could not.
Paul vs. Silva takes place later tonight, October 29, at the Gila River Arena in Glendale, Arizona.