YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul has appeared to hint that negotiations are underway for him to face controversial Internet personality Andrew Tate.
Last month in Arizona, Paul extended his presence on the mainstream combat sports scene by adding a sixth victory to his professional record. What started out as a venture into the ring to face fellow online stars and notable sportsmen has since developed into a stint that’s seen Paul collide with mixed martial artists.
And having previously knocked out both Ben Askren and Tyron Woodley, Paul secured his biggest win to date when he shared the squared circle with former UFC middleweight king Anderson Silva in the headliner of a Showtime pay-per-view.
As well as outpointing “The Spider” across eight rounds, “The Problem Child” also secured a late knockdown against the man widely considered to be the greatest MMA striker of all time.
Unsurprisingly, talk has quickly turned to who Paul could face in his seventh professional fight as his pursuit of further legitimizing his place in the sport continues. While he’d previously targeted a showdown with an established pro-boxer, the Cleveland native appeared to set his sights on Nate Diaz.
Following his victory over Silva, Paul called out the Stockton native in the ring, with a backstage altercation between Diaz’s entourage and members of Paul’s team further stoking the fire.
Despite that, though, Paul’s latest teaser has pointed to a different notable figure — and certainly a more controversial one…
Jake Paul Hints At “Negotiations” For Tate Fight
While he’d previously caused controversy in the United Kingdom following a brief stint on the reality series Big Brother, former kickboxer Andrew Tate has risen to immense prominence in 2022 as an Internet personality.
Tate, who was known as “Cobra” during his fighting days, has been the subject of intense scrutiny for some of the views he’s shared online, with the American-Brit being widely branded a misogynist. After a campaign for him to be de-platformed, Tate was permanently banned from Instagram and Facebook.
Prior to his controversial status as an influencer, Tate found some success in kickboxing, winning an ISKA world title. Given his notoriety and past experience in combat sports, some have pointed to Tate as a possible opponent for Paul.
While “The Problem Child” initially dismissed that notion, claiming not to know who Tate was, rumors have persisted, with the polarizing 35-year-old even hinting that negotiations were underway a few months ago.
“I know everyone wants that,” Tate replied when asked about a fight with either one of the Paul brothers on a Twitch stream with Adin Ross. “These are sophisticated negotiations that involve a lot of parties so we shouldn’t be talking about it on here.” (h/t Mirror Fighting)
Now, Paul has provided his own teaser on social media with a video of the pair having a faceoff next to a boxing ring. The caption simply reads: “Negotiations.”
Paul vs Tate is a fight that many influencer boxing fans have hoping to see for quite some time. Tate is a four-time ISKA kickboxing world champion with a solid 43-9 record.
Jake Paul and Andrew Tate have finally met face-to-face
Jake Paul and Andrew Tate have finally met face-to-face.The pair of internet stars appear to be lining up a fight, with them seen standing up to one another bare-chested in a gym.
Sharing the clip to Twitter, Paul wrote: “Negotiations.”
Paul and Tate have had a bit of a back and forth over recent months, with the former Disney kid branding Tate’s fans ‘virgins’.
Speaking to his brother Logan on his Impaulsive podcast earlier this year, the 25-year-old hit out at the former Big Brother contestant’s catchphrase ‘what colour is your Bugatti?’
Paul said: “I just think it’s funny that the ‘Top G’ is a fanboy. He runs with this whole thing like ‘what colour is your Bugatti?'”
He then aimed his next barb at Tate directly: “Andrew, it’s not cool to tell kids that they need a Bugatti to be cool.”
But the bad blood runs deeper than those comments
Back in 2021, Tate, a former kickboxer, offered the younger Paul bother $3 million ($AUD 4.2 million, £1.7 million) for a sanctioned fight, claiming the he needed a ‘reality check’.
In a video posted online, the controversial figure said: “Jake Paul, it’s clear to me you are desperate for a reality check. Let me explain something to you about combat sports.
“There are a whole bunch of men out here who will never be as famous as you, will never make the money you’ve made — who would kick the living f**k out of you. I’m one of the lucky ones. I made a little bit of money. I don’t have 50 million to bet with you, but I do have 3 million to bet with you.”
However, Paul, who now boasts a perfect record of 6-0 since turning professional, told his brother that he didn’t think Tate would actually take a fight with either of them…. and the reasoning behind it is brutal.
“I don’t think he gets in the ring with one of us,” Paul admitted.
“It’s too big of a risk for him. He’s ‘alpha male’, right? That’s his whole entire thing.”
He added: “And when he loses – he will lose to either one of us he fights – his whole schtick and all the women will be like, ‘Yeah!’ and his whole schtick goes out the window.”
Well, it looks like fans might actually get to see who would come out on top, if Paul’s latest video is anything to go by.
And there seems to be a fair bit of excitement around the potential bout.
Commenting on the post, one user said: “Well, this one is interesting.”