Jake Paul has an A+ social media game and he displayed that once again along with his latest fight announcement.
It’s official. On Oct. 29, 2022, at the Gila River Arena in Phoenix, Arizona, Paul will box mixed martial arts (MMA) icon and former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Middleweight kingpin, Anderson Silva. The eight-round 187 pound affair is expected to be Paul’s toughest test to date and to kick things off, he provided some top-tier promotional with assistance from “Conor McGregor’s dad,” UFC President, Dana White.
(2/2) pic.twitter.com/mJ3oB42Fe9
— Jake Paul (@jakepaul) September 6, 2022
“Guess who?!” Paul said via video. “Now, I normally don’t agree with Dana White, but he is right. Anderson Silva is literally the greatest MMA fighter of all time and one of the most versatile fighters in the history of combat sports. He literally just schooled a world champion boxer in Julio ‘Captain Crunch’ Ceasar Jr. III.
“Anderson Silva has been on a KO streak, knocking out Tito Ortiz, Bruno Machado, I mean, this guy is nasty in the ring,” he continued. “For me, this fight was supposed to be after Tommy Fury because I’ve never fought a southpaw and this is a much tougher fight. Every fight critic said I wouldn’t take this fight and if I did, I would lose to Silva.”
Paul’s last fight took place in Dec. 2021, scoring a devastating fifth-round knockout of Tyron Woodley in their short-notice rematch (watch highlights). “The Problem Child” was set to return sooner with a match up against Hasim Rahman Jr. early last month (Aug. 6, 2022), but Rahman failed to make the agreed-upon weight, resulting in the entire event’s cancelation.
Silva, 47, seemed like a stretch for possible next opponents Paul could face in his continually intriguing run as a boxer. In this build-up, it looks like the typical trash talk the YouTube star has provided ahead of his prior five outings will take a backseat.
“Joe Rogan, Dana White, and many of the other MMA experts have named Anderson Silva the greatest MMA fighter of all time,” Paul said. “Anderson holds the UFC record for the longest title reign in the history of the sport. 2,457 days. And he holds the record for most UFC victories in a row which is 16. Most knockouts in UFC title fights, most finishes in UFC title fights, most knockouts by division, most knockdowns in career title bouts, most significant strikes landed. This guy’s accolades are f—king crazy.
“It’s an absolute honor to be sharing the ring with such a legend like Anderson Silva, but only one of us can walk out as a winner and I believe it’s gonna be me,” he concluded.