Eddie Hearn had mixed feelings about the spectacle that was Jake Paul vs. Nate Diaz in Dallas, Texas on Aug. 5, 2023.
Longtime mixed martial arts (MMA) star, Diaz, was unable to come up victorious in his professional boxing debut at Middleweight, dropping a 10 three-minute round unanimous decision to “The Problem Child” (watch highlights). Despite his best efforts, Diaz remained a fan favorite from start to finish of the boxing match’s build and aftermath.
Each boxer worked together to promote their match and event to put on a well-ran product. No stranger to the boxing promotion game, the aforementioned Hearn has worked alongside Paul before and praised the product delivered. However, what actually happened in the ring was another story.
“It was awful,” Hearn told The MMA Hour. “Don’t get me wrong, the event was unbelievable. You (Ariel Helwani) did a great job. Brilliant. But when you’re talking about — you know MMA like the back of your hand. I know boxing like the back of my hand, and I’m watching that like (face in his hands), ‘This is so bad.’ The reason that Nate didn’t get stopped is that Jake didn’t have the ability. He doesn’t know how to break a fighter down, cut off the ring, beat him up, and stop him. But I give my props to Nate: super tough. Super tough. But you’re talking about low, low level in terms of standard.”
Diaz’s patented Stockton, Calif. toughness was on full display throughout the match, especially in the first half. Suffering a big knockdown in round five, the one-time Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) title challenger managed to rally and remain competitive until the final bell.
Ultimately, the 38-year-old Diaz couldn’t match the 26-year-old Paul’s power and threat with anything but volume. Hearn has respect for Paul and his willingness to carve the career he has thus far, but he remains realistic on just how much boxing talent has been on display in his eight fights thus far.
“We have something in the U.K. called an area title, which is in a specific radius — it’s kind of like a state title,” Hearn said. “These guys wouldn’t win a state title — that’s the level they’re fighting at.
“But listen, props to Nate,” he concluded. “He definitely didn’t have ability, but what he did have was grit. But Jake just doesn’t have the ability or the experience to break someone down and stop them. And I was convinced he would.”