Jake Paul's sparring partner Anthony Taylor called out Floyd Mayweather for an impromptu fight - then bottled it by climbing out of the ring.
Taylor, who helped Paul prepare for his first fight with UFC legend Tyron Woodley last year, will return to the ring this weekend against Love Islander Jack Fincham. They will trade blows on the undercard of Mayweather's latest exhibition bout against British YouTuber Deji in Dubai.
And as the fighters completed their workouts on Tuesday, Taylor climbed into the ring and called on Mayweather to pull his gloves on and face in there and then. The 45-year-old boxing legend agreed but Taylor ultimately backed down after his coach convinced him to save the fighting for Sunday.
"I'm not going to fight for free, especially Floyd Mayweather," Taylor told Mirror Fighting . "I don't want to be the guy beating up a senior citizen. I'm just going to wait util my time comes; let him handle Deji, I'll handle Jack and then I'm going to beat up a senior citizen."
Taylor makes a quick return to the ring having outpointed Rak-Su singer Ashley Tebi last month. Taylor dropped his opponent inside three seconds in Sheffield but was ultimately taken the three-round distance by the debutant before being given the nod by the judges.
Taylor has called out a number of opponents including Deji's brother KSI who will be ringside on Sunday. "What can I say about Jack ' Love Island ' Fincham? Well, firstly we need to pay respect to his strengths. A fighter must always be aware of his opponent's strengths," he told Vegas Insider.
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"For Jack it's his very white teeth. His only chance is to blind me with those pearly whites and then catch me a shot I don't see coming. But that's not going to happen. Jack, like Tommy Fury, doesn't belong inside a ring. They belong on Love Island. They are reality stars, not fighters. They're not built for the hurt game and that's exactly what is going to happen to Jack, he's going to get hurt.
"After I dispose of Fincham, I want KSI. If KSI wants the Jake Paul fight, then I'm the perfect opponent to start with, having sparred many rounds with Paul. Earn your shot against Jake by beating his sparring partner."