Jake Paul might have run into another obstacle on his way to August 6..
After an initial bout with Tommy Fury fell through due to alleged travel issues on Fury’s part, Paul pivoted last week to a short-notice matchup against Hasim Rahman Jr., the son of former two-time heavyweight champion Hasim Rahman. Paul and Rahman Jr. will promote their new bout at a New York City press conference Tuesday.
But Monday’s episode Paul revealed that the press conference and fight may be at risk due to ongoing negotiations.
“Hasim Raman Jr. is actually trying to renegotiate the contract right now,” Paul stated. “So he signed a contract last week for 10 times more than he’s ever been paid for any one of his fights, and now — boom, fast-forward one week — he’s trying to renegotiate, he’s trying to suck more money out of the fight, he’s trying to do anything he can to claw and make the money, because I think he realizes the consequences of what might happen.
“I think he’s actually scared to fight me. A lot of these guys are excited by the money at first, and then when it actually comes time to start training and getting into camp and doing all of these things, they all chicken out. So who knows if this fight is even going to happen at this point, because we’re not going to pay him more money. It’s just not worth the risk. He has name but he doesn’t have a massive name. It’s sad, man .”
Rahman Jr. is 12-1 in his pro boxing run. This past April, he suffered the first loss of his professional career when was knocked out by James Morrison.
Paul has emerged as one of the highest-paid athletes in combat sports while compiling a 5-0 record as a professional. His most recent outings saw him outpoint Tyron Woodley via split decision before scoring a highlight-reel knockout over the former UFC welterweight champion in their December 2021 rematch.
Paul indicated Monday that Rahman Jr.’s team is threatening to no-show the press conference if they don’t get their wishes met to renegotiate terms.
“I think his team is, and we don’t give a f***,” Paul said. I’m not going to pay the guy any more. These guys are trying to charge too much. He’s being paid 10 more than he has ever earned, and now, he wants 30 more than that which he ever made. But, there is a contract. He signed the contract, now he wants to say, “Well, I don’t want to fight .’
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“If Hasim withdraws, we won’t be doing the event,” Paul said. I’m sick of changing opponents. There’s really no other names. It’s impossible to swap out an opponent at the last minute. We will have to reset and reschedule. The tickets and it creates so many complications for refunds and it’s just a f****** nightmare and a pain in the ass. At this point, it’s too late to give someone [else] a fair amount of time to train. It’s important that I have someone who is willing to challenge me. If we call someone three weeks ago and they say, “Hey, the fight is in three weeks,” then it could be that we excuse ourselves by saying, “Well, they had only a few weeks to train. It wasn’t fair.
“This is the last resort. We hope it happens. He won’t be paid more so we will wait to see his final decision. It’s really sad. It pisses me off, man. This ****** really bothers me. It’s crazy to see how Disney Channel every kid wants to fight but everyone else is .”
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Less than 24 hours out from their scheduled press event, Paul also issued a message directly to Rahman Jr.
“Don’t lose the largest bag in your life, dumbass,” Paul stated. I know that you are not very intelligent, but it is possible to literally lose all the f ****** cash right now. Don’t make the wrong decision, don’t let these sharks around you try to negotiate to get more money, because we’re not paying you more money. Show up, be a professional boxer, and don’t be a b****. Your dad is not the person you are. This might be your moment to become something like your dad, but right now you’ve let your dad down in every single thing you’ve done in your life, and if you fumble this, he’s going to be even more disappointed in you.
“Make it happen, and knock me out August 6, or you’ll be a b ****.”
