Jake Paul has said Conor McGregor is “scared” and called out UFC champion Alex Pereira after extending his record of wins over MMA fighters by knocking out Mike Perry in the sixth round of their boxing match in Florida.
YouTuber-turned-boxer Paul knocked former UFC competitor Perry down in the second round before flattening the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) brawler in a corner as the American, who was a tune-up opponent after boxing icon Mike Tyson’s bout with Paul was postponed, offered only moderate resistance.
“Conor is on Twitter all the time,” said Paul, referencing his own past as an actor on the Disney Channel.
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“He’s on his yacht all the time. But guess where he’s not? In the ring fighting me, so he can talk all the s*** he wants.
“But then the Notorious MMA, remember, is scared of Jake Joseph Paul from Disney Channel.”
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McGregor pulled out of his scheduled UFC comeback against Michael Chandler last month with a toe injury but has said the bout will go ahead, by which time the two-weight former champion will have spent more than two years out of action.
The Irishman fired predictable social media broadsides at Paul and Perry in the aftermath of their showdown, even suggesting that Perry will be released from BKFC, which McGregor part-owns.
Paul, whose 11 professional boxing matches have included several wins over MMA fighters well past their peak, including Anderson Silva and Nate Diaz, called out current UFC competitor Alex Pereira.
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“I’m the king of this,” said Paul. “Come over. We can make it happen. I want you, Alex Pereira. I just beat a BKFC champion.
“I’ve beaten multiple UFC champions. He said he wants to box. So, Alex Pereira, after Mike Tyson, let’s make it happen.”
Paul vs Perry: MMA fighter ‘beast’
Paul called Perry – a 32-year-old who fought for the UFC between 2016 and 2021 – a “f****** beast”.
“Where all those MMA experts [who] said Mike Perry was going to end me?” the American asked his millions of social media followers.
Pereira became the UFC light heavyweight champion by knocking out Jiri Prochazka in November 2023, having previously held the promotion’s middleweight title.
The Brazilian has defended the belt twice since April, knocking out Jamahal Hill at UFC 300 and stopping Prochazka again on June 29.
Paul vs Pereira: ‘Let’s run it’
Paul showed himself speaking to Pereira immediately after his fight, when the 37-year-old said he would be willing to take part in a bout and assured the man 10 years his junior that his UFC contract will not prevent him from participating.
“If he can get out of his contract then let’s run it,” Paul later said. “When I asked him that, he had a pause – he looked at his manager.
“You know these guys aren’t their own bosses. I want everybody I love this sport and he’s tweeted about wanting to go into boxing.”
Paul’s rescheduled fight with former heavyweight boxing champion Tyson is set to take place on November 15.
Top image: Esther Lin/MVP
