Former UFC champion doesn't see Jake Paul becoming PFL champion in season format
YouTuber-turned-boxing sensation Jake Paul has finally made the much-anticipated switch to mixed martial arts.
Paul announced that he was signing on with MMA promotion Professional Fighters League (PFL) for his MMA debut but has already been written off as a future champion in his new promotion by a former UFC champion.
Check out Paul's announcement video with the PFL:
Signed, Sealed, Delivered. Welcome to the Professional Fighters League @jakepaul https://t.co/pgMDUprK6S
Former UFC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis spoke to Inside Fighting in their No Cappin' segment and gave his opinion on the possibility of 'The Problem Child' becoming the champion.
He put it down to the promotion to facilitate Paul's path to a championship but otherwise maintained that the format remains the hardest to beat across mixed martial arts.
"It depends if they make a division specifically for Jake Paul bro. I mean if he's the owner of the company, he can make a championship. Jake Paul doing the season, hell nah. The season format of PFL is the hardest form of MMA there is. No way, I mean, that s**t's hard."
Pettis stressed that the promotion could create an entirely new division for Paul to compete in. This was further confirmed by Paul when he revealed the new super fight division that he will be a part of.
After fighting former mixed martial artists like Anderson Silva, Tyrone Woodley, and Ben Askren in the boxing ring, Paul has finally agreed to step into a mixed martial arts arena. His current professional boxing record stands unbeaten at 6-0.
Anthony Pettis offers to welcome Jake Paul to MMA and train with him
Anthony Pettis reacted to the news of Jake Paul signing for an MMA promotion by pitching a fight with the latter in case the Nate Diaz bout doesn't happen.
Pettis took to Twitter and wrote:
"Welcome to the PFL @jakepaul More than happy to welcome you to MMA’s league if Nate isn’t available @PeteMurrayPFL @PFLMMA @DonnDavisPFL"
Check out the tweet below:
Welcome to the PFL @jakepaul
More than happy to welcome you to MMA’s league if Nate isn’t available 🤝 @PeteMurrayPFL @PFLMMA @DonnDavisPFL
Nate Diaz and Paul have been going at each other for a while, and an MMA matchup between the two is even likelier after this latest development. Pettis addressed potentially coaching Paul in preparation for his MMA debut in the interview with Inside Fighting:
"I don't train guys yet, I'm saving that for the later part of my career. I think once I get to that spot that it's time to hang up the gloves, so I'll train with guys but I don't train guys yet."
Check out Anthony Pettis' full interview with Inside Fighting: