Jake Paul might look like a one-man army going to war with the UFC and Dana White, but he promises there are silent masses from inside the promotion who are backing him up.
After releasing a “diss track” aimed at the UFC president and business practices that Paul has targeted as unfair to the athletes, the 25-year-old undefeated boxer says several prominent fighters have reached out to him privately to show support, but none can do so publicly out of fear of biting the hand that feeds them.
“There are a lot fighters, many big fighters in UFC, who privately message me and tell me, “We love it, this is funny.” Keep on going, but I can’t support this publicly,'” Paul said Monday on The MMA Hour.
White and Paul have been engaged in an ugly war of words over the last year. They disagree about Paul’s boxing career as well as his critique towards UFC fighter pay.
Paul recently bought stock in Endeavor, the parent company of the UFC. This was not only to help White get his music out there but also to make fundamental internal changes. He said that he was also interested in launching a fighters’ union.
Paul claims his efforts are to help UFC fighters earn more money and a better life, but he doesn’t ask anyone to support him publicly as he understands that the consequences for them could be catastrophic.
” Paul stated that he didn’t want his family to have to give up. They must feed their families. Like I said earlier, I happen to have a platform to be able to do this. Therefore, I have accepted the responsibility. I will take it on. I’ve made that decision. No matter what, I will go to war. I don’t need the fighters in the UFC to support this.
“Behind the scenes, it would be great for them to support it and talk about it and push for these movements, and obviously if there’s a fighters’ union created, everyone in the UFC should join it to create power and to create a better position for themselves and a better life for themselves. They don’t have to publicly support diss tracks or any other similar activities. That would be a waste of their time and they won’t do anything but f*ck themselves. They should win and earn more .”
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Paul’s constant attacks on White and the UFC have earned him plenty of attention, but also skepticism about whether or not he’s actually concerned about helping UFC fighters.
Because he’s already amassed such a large following after by first coming to prominence as a social influencer and YouTube star, Paul isn’t hurting for people to follow his every move. That’s a big part of why Paul is quick to defend his true intentions, though he’s also happy to allow his actions to speak louder than his words.
“I’m not letting off the gas any time soon, and I’ve spent a bunch of my own money on this matter and pushing for these things,” Paul said. “I wake up everyday with a purpose on my mind and I think I’ve done more than enough to show for women’s boxing, fighter pay, equality, fighters, boxing promoters — I’ve done more than enough in terms of actions. And even more cards previously, almost every fighter that’s been on it, it’s their highest payday, always.
“I’ve gotten Tyron Woodley his highest payday, Ben Askren his highest payday. So these fighters who are always mistreated, I’m taking action, I’m backing it up. It’s not going to be easy and it is something I care about. It’s not like I don’t care. It’s not enough for me. I enjoy this. I like this. It’s a great feeling to feel obligated and gain momentum in this movement. This is exactly what I desired and I am excited to keep leading this conversation .”
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Paul is a boxer who has enjoyed a great career and earned him a lot of money. He knows that he would rather just relax and take in his million dollars. But he says that wouldn’t bring him the same level of satisfaction as helping the fighters he watches and admires from afar.
“For people that don’t think I’m serious about it, you’ll see,” Paul said. “We’re talking to lawyers to begin a process to start a fighter’s union. I’m not spending all my time and money. Anything is possible. I made $45 million this last year. I have a badass girlfriend. Lamborghinis are my favorite car. I can go to the club. It would be possible to go out for dinner. I would be able to hang out with hip-hop artists. I could retire. It would be easy to give up all my crypto investments. I have everything I want in life, but what gives me a lot of pleasure is helping other people.
“I’ve noticed that it brings back more for me in the long run. People might think that I take too much time to accomplish these tasks behind closed doors. There’s so much more than they see. People see interviews, they hear me talking about it. But the real nitty-gritty of my work, where I get my hands dirty, is what they don’t see. I’m in the weeds and people will see that.”
