YouTube celebrity turned professional boxer Jake Paul is not impressed after seeing his next opponent, Ben Askren, hit the bag for the first time.
Paul transitioned to the sport last year and has enjoyed success against extremely low-level opponents. Most notably Paul knocked out former NBA player Nate Robinson on the undercard of Mike Tyson vs. Roy Jones Jr. on November 28.
Next, he’ll face an actual fighter for the first time in Askren. ‘Funky’ retired from the MMA in 2019 after enjoying a wildly successful career that saw him hold titles in Bellator and ONE Championship.
Luckily for the social media star, Askren is primarily known or his elite level wrestling and lack of striking ability.
According to Triller founder Ryan Kavanaugh, the fight will be contested on April 17 with ten-ounce gloves in a twenty-by-twenty ring. The card will feature popular names from boxing, MMA, and social media competing in the squared circle.
Earlier this week Askren jokingly posted a clip to social media of him hitting a heavy bad with Paul’s face on.
In an interview with TMZ, Paul revealed he was amused but impressed by what he had seen.
“It’s funny, bro. I’m starting to like Ben, oddly enough,” Paul said. “He’s funny. He’s entertaining me right now. I thought that was hilarious. I thought, ‘Bro, what are you doing?’ Like what is that? And it looks like his hands are so small. It looks like he has tiny hands in that video,” Paul said.
“Hopefully, he’s just joking,” Paul added. “Hopefully, he’s just trolling. But Ben’s doing a good job to promote the fight, but it doesn’t change the fact that I’m going to knock him out in one round. This guy fights and looks like a middle-aged Dutch woman.”
Do you think Ben Askren was actually trolling Jake Paul with the clip?