UFC Hall of Famer and former UFC Middleweight Champion turned analyst Michael Bisping recently expressed his distaste for Jake Paul’s Round 1 win against Ryan Bourland that took place on March 2nd, making Jake Paul’s record 9-1 professionally.
Bisping, along with many other UFC fighters such as Sean Strickland, have critiqued the genre of ‘YouTube Boxers’ in the past too, calling out YouTube boxing events for their notoriously low levels of skill yet their incredibly profitable nature. Micheal Bisping further commented on Jake Paul’s matchups, calling Jake – ‘The FAKE’ Paul.
Michael Bisping explains why Jake Paul is the real ‘bully’
According to Michael, Jake Paul’s win didn’t surprise anybody because Jake was always destined to win against Ryan Bourland. Bourland, a retired professional boxer who quit due to the ‘lack of money in the sport’ in 2018, started working oil rigs in North Carolina to support himself financially. Bourland was once a very capable boxer during the peak of his career but had evidently lost a lot of that skillset after quitting.
According to Michael, for Jake this was a ‘cherrypicked’ opponent, set to lose to Jake. “Ryan Bourland never really showed up,” said Bisping, referring to the body language of Bourland during the fight. Bisping further highlighted the amount of the pay-per-view, referring to it as a scam of an event, calling it a money grab.
Michael Bisping further explained the nature of matchmaking in Boxing, pointing out that boxers on a ‘come-up’ are usually expected to have matches with boxers who have a padded record, or those that are journeymen.
Jake Paul on the other hand, is a top of the belt Boxer, headlining a main event, whereas boxers on the come up are usually placed in undercards. Michael points to the clever nature of Jake Paul, having chosen more than half of his matchups with retired/old fighters that Jake would have an easier time with.
According to Michael, this is unfair, not only to the fans who buy the pay-per-views, but also the sport, as it sells itself as real boxing, whereas it is cherrypicked in favor of Jake. Michael Bisping also said that he would respect Jake if he were to fight boxers of his caliber that are also on the come up and hungry for a win, instead of fighters that have previously retired and might be there for the pay-day.
Jake Paul wants to face Canelo Alvarez next
Jake Paul went on to call out Canelo Alvarez during his post-fight interview, saying that Alvarez has been ‘ducking’ Jake for some time now. Alvarez is yet to respond to Jake Paul’s callout, and according to boxing fans, would probably not engage with Jake.
“It makes sense… Let’s make it happen. You can run, but you can’t hide!”, he called out.
Alvarez boasts a professional record of 60 wins, 2 losses, 2 no contests per Box rec, in the Super Middleweight category, and according to his fans, doesn’t need Jake’s money.
However, Ryan Garcia has called out Jake Paul in the meantime, expressing his regret for introducing Jake Paul to the world of professional boxing, inviting Jake to contact his team. This makes things complicated again due to the difference in weight categories of the two but will be a highly anticipated matchup if it is to happen.
Would Alvarez take Jake’s ‘bait’, or will he continue to be silent about the same? Let us know what you think!
