UFC Legend Michael Bisping declares his interest in boxing Jake Paul and instructs him to send him a contract for a pay per view bout.
Paul took jabs at Bisping over the weekend, stating the UFC Hall of Famer was on his “hit list” of potential opponents, sparking a social media back-and-forth between the two. As the buzz around this potential bout has grown, Bisping responded with a video on his YouTube channel, answering an essential question: Will he face Jake Paul?
“So, do I want to fight Jake Paul?” Bisping said. “Listen, here’s the thing, I had a great career. I’m very happy with what I accomplished, I’m happily retired. I’m very, very happily retired. But I do miss the thrill of competition — and I don’t see Jake Paul as necessarily a threat. I retired from fighting because I only had one eye and I didn’t want to risk my other eye. In boxing, bigger gloves, against Jake Paul, I don’t really see him as a threat. So Jake Paul, beating you up sounds like fun.
“Of course you are a big star, and God bless you, well done to you. I’m not hating. Well done to you, you’ve done great things, all jokes aside, because I am kind of joking. You’ve done great, you’re earning a lot of money, you’re a big star, you’re getting a lot of pay-per-views and stuff like that. So for that reason, I probably would. I probably would, but we’ve been here before. He sent an email to [Bisping’s manager] Audie Attar, Paradigm Sports management, or his manager did, asking if I would fight him, offering $500,000. I said double it, add pay-per-view, and we’ll see where we go. Never even got a response. So he’s doing the same thing again here.”
Nakisa Bidarian, Paul’s representative, previously acknowledged that Paul and his team made an offer to Bisping before Paul’s fight with Ben Askren but were unable to reach an agreement, and the fact is that a battle between the two would face significant obstacles even now.
Bisping disclosed that he was blind in one eye after retiring from MMA in 2018 and that he had spent years avoiding athletic commissions to continue competing. As a result, Bisping believes it will be difficult for him to obtain a boxing license in the United States, but if Paul is willing to go, they should be able to find a venue for this proposed bout.
“This fight is never gonna happen, but I’ll tell you what, Jake, if you want to throw down, if you want to step in the squared circle with me, I’ll oblige. I’ll do it,” Bisping said. “It sounds like fun.
“I’m very happily retired, and to be honest this whole thing is beneath me,” – Michael Bisping on fighting Jake Paul
Bisping looks to be laughing at Paul, at least to some level, for his bravado in calling him out, even though he is 18 years Paul’s senior, retired, and physically frail. Even yet, Bisping appears to be interested in assisting him – assuming Paul is serious.
“So yeah, there it is. Am I joking? A little bit. Am I serious? Maybe a little bit,” Bisping said. “If you are serious, if you want to do it, send an email. You’ve done it once before. Tell your manager to send me an email. I don’t want to fight — I don’t. I’m very happily retired, and to be honest this whole thing is beneath me, but it does generate a lot of interest and I think me vs. him would generate a lot of interest. I’m not saying I want to fight Jake Paul, because that would be kind of pathetic. But it just got me thinking.
“Jake, good luck with what you’re doing, just call out someone your own size. Tommy Fury. That should be the fight. … You’re a young man, you’re in your prime — fight a young man in his prime. If you want to fight a 43-year-old guy with one eye and no knees, hey buddy, let’s go. Send location, send a contract, Send something, rather than just talking on Teddy Atlas’ podcast.”
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