Former UFC champion says 'there was an | MMA News
Last Friday’s boxing match between Jake Paul and former two-time heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua ended in the sixth spherical with Paul needing surgical procedure to right a damaged jaw.
While the fight-ending sequence was real, former UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling noticed some issues during the struggle that has him questioning the validity of the competition.
“Jake Paul, he does a good job taking on Anthony Joshua. I’m going to say that good job was that he was ballsy enough to get in there, to take the risk to fight a guy bigger than him for once. He was going to fight Gervonta Davis for crying out loud. Everybody else he’s fought has been noticeably smaller than him, significantly smaller, so I give him some grace in that,” Sterling said on his YouTube channel.
“But my direct thing when I was watching this is where are the lines? Because it felt like you got this Olympic level, high caliber level boxer, world class boxer in Anthony Joshua who looks like he’s playing with his food and people are sitting there eating it up like, ‘Oh, Jake’s doing a really good job. He’s moving his feet. He’s staying away.’ And I’m just like, you’re telling me this guy forgot how to cut the ring off,” Sterling continued.
“The way I feel, there’s just no way a guy of his caliber, of Anthony Joshua’s level of caliber of boxing, all the experience he has fighting all these other world class guys. We’ve seen how he fights them. And then Jake Paul comes in there, who just relatively started boxing. He’s pretty skilled for a guy at his level, how long he’s even in boxing, but not heavyweight level, not fighting a guy who is as well decorated as Anthony Joshua.
“The fact that he was even in a position to get to that spherical, what was it, spherical sixth? You can say it is spectacular, but I also really feel the other facet of me that has seen Anthony Joshua struggle makes me marvel was there a wager on let’s just carry Jake Paul to X quantity of rounds, make him look good. We need to entertain and perhaps there’s a lot of people placing money on it going past three or 4 rounds, or one thing like this. I’ve acquired to speculate and marvel.”
Related: Former UFC champion: Jake Paul’s performance was ‘inspiring’
Stelring’s not the only former UFC champion that believes Joshua carried Paul to the sixth round. Former two-time middleweight titleholder Israel Adesanya made the same accusation.
“I give him respect. He acquired his jaw damaged. You cannot faux that. But that’s what ought to have presumably occurred in the first spherical. And that is my level,” Sterling said. “There are ranges to boxing. And no disrespect to Jake Paul. Again, entertainer, great for the game in phrases of being eyeballs, but that ahold not have gone that long.
“There were points where Jake was turning his head like he was rolling with the punch and it looked like? Everyone I was watching with was kind of like up in arms, like, ‘This fight is trash.’ I’m like, yeah. It’s a spectacle. It’s not an actual fight. Because in real like, I just don’t think Jake Paul would get out of, I’ll give him two rounds at the most,” continued Sterling. “I don’t want to say rigged. I want to say there was an agreement is where I’m at.”
Stay up to date with the latest news in blended martial arts! Our web site is your go-to source for cutting-edge MMA news, struggle highlights, fighter stats, and insights into upcoming matchups. We present daily updates to guarantee you could have access to the freshest info on struggle outcomes, rankings, injury reviews, and major bulletins.
Explore how these trends are shaping the future of the game! Visit us usually for the most participating and informative MMA content by clicking right here. Our fastidiously curated articles will keep you informed on UFC occasions, championship fights, fighter contracts, and historic moments in the octagon.
