YouTube star Jake Paul has welcomed a fight with Nate Diaz after he submitted Tony Ferguson at UFC 279.
Diaz, 37, made a stunning exit from the UFC after spending 15 years in the promotion by choking out Ferguson with a guillotine choke in the fourth round of their fight. Diaz was originally scheduled to face Khamzat Chimaev in the main event, but Chimaev missed weight by 7.5lb for the fight and was rebooked to face Kevin Holland on the card.
The fight between Diaz and Ferguson was evenly contested heading into the fourth round, with Ferguson beating up Diaz's legs with kicks whilst the Stockton-native was landing the better punches. Diaz, who has been linked to a fight with Paul, hinted at a move to boxing in his post-fight interview by stating: "I'm going to go out there and take over another profession and show everybody I'm the best at that."
Paul hailed Diaz a "legend" after his win over Ferguson and insisted the UFC veteran would have beat Chimaev if the fight wasn't scratched. "Nate Diaz is a muthuf****n legend and would have slapped the shit out of Khamzat," he wrote. The YouTube star then teased a fight with Diaz by posting a video of himself stating: "Nate Diaz is going into the sport of boxing, I wonder who he should fight."
UFC boss Dana White has grown sick of addressing Paul's boxing career and stated he "doesn't care" about his upcoming fight against Anderson Silva. Paul mocked White's comments in another tweet, adding: "UFC PR Team to media attending post fight presser: DO NOT ASK our boss Dana about Jake Paul or Anderson Silva. He’s very upset at Jake. If you do you will have your media credential revoked."
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Paul has made multiple offers to fight Diaz, but has previously been unable to secure the fight due to the Diaz being under UFC contract. White insists Diaz has told him he wouldn't fight Paul, telling Yahoo Sports : “He said, ‘I would never do that.’ That’s what he said to me. He said, ‘That s***’s goofy.’ I don’t know. That’s what he said to me.” White's comments were contradicted by Diaz claiming he is "interested in anything" when asked about a potential fight with Paul.
Paul launched a career in the boxing ring after ditching his YouTube fame and is now one of the most high-profile stars in the sport despite having had just five professional fights. The 25-year-old's current wins include two over former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley and one against ex-contender Ben Askren.
