Mairis Briedis has suggested that he is prepared to “cancel everything” if YouTuber turned boxer Jake Paul agrees to a title fight.
Briedis is a three-time champion at cruiserweight and currently holds the IBF and The Ring titles.
The Latvian dressed as eponymous video game character Mario this week after Paul suggested he did not know who Briedis was, calling him by the Italian plumber’s name.
That has not put Briedis off an encounter with the American, who has a 5-0 record as a professional but is yet to take on an established boxer.
In an interview with The Mirror, Briedis praised Paul for his ability to market fights and suggested that any potential bout with the 25-year-old would become an immediate priority if it were agreed.
“He is brilliant in social and how he sells his fights and how he gets the huge money in our platform of boxing,” Briedis said of Paul.
“He isn’t stupid that is why he deletes my comments on his posts, but I believe this fight happens because this is my ideas what I do with my tattoo and song. I made it interesting with this ‘Mario’ surprise.
“We have very good ideas but also step-by-step so we go next to Australia. But also Jake Paul if he says yes we cancel everything and face Jake Paul.”
Briedis believes that a match between the pair would make sense to market one of boxing’s marquee title belts to a new generation of fans.
He also challenged the internet personality, who first came to prominence on short-form video sharing app Vine, to show the attitude of a professional athlete and train properly if he receives a chance to fight for a title.
Discussing a potential title shot for Paul, Briedis explained: “This is a big promotion for the IBF, WBC, WBO and this old championship belt.
“The stocks go up and this is what we need you to know, people need to know these organisations but not for people who already understand it.
“We need to show younger people and future generations. He needs to train and show what happens when you are a good athlete. That is why you can’t just sit and play some computer games.
“If you train and do your best you can travel the world. I come from a family who don’t have money, but I want to thank the sport of boxing.”
