Jake Paul calls out Nate Diaz for two-fight deal after signing with MMA promotion PFL

Jake Paul will turn his hand to MMA after signing a multi-year deal to fight with the Professional Fighters League. 

According to the New York Times, the influencer, who has recently found success in the Boxing ring, will compete in a new division known as Super Fight, with events taking place on pay-per-view. 

Paul, and his business partner Nakisa Bidarian are among the founders of the division and own an equity share in the PFL, which is seen as a promotion to rival Dana White’s UFC. 

He has been given the title  ‘head of fighter advocacy’ at PFL, which means he will use his huge following on social media to promote the fights. While Bidarian, who was previously chief financial officer at the UFC, will see over league operations and logistics for the pay-per-view events.

The idea behind the Super Fights is to include fighters who will instantly draw revenue, rather than host competitors looking to win championships in weight classes. 

One of those names could be Nate Diaz, who Paul still intends on fighting this year in a two-fight deal. One, in a boxing ring, and the other a Super Fight division clash in MMA about four to six months later. 

Paul has targeted Nate Diaz and wants to fight him in a two-match deal across the two sports

Paul pushing for a boxing match follows the trend of the bouts the 25-year-old has competed in so far. While he boasts an impressive 6-0 record between the ropes, his fights have come against popular figures with little or no professional boxing experience. 

However, stepping into an MMA environment with a seasoned competitor like Diaz would be unlike anything Paul has done so far in his combat career – yet he remains confident he could beat the 37-year-old free agent. 

‘I would beat Nate Diaz up in a M.M.A. fight,’ Paul said, adding an expletive. ‘There’s nothing he could do. To me, I’ve always felt like I’ve jumped in the deep end, even in boxing.’ 

Paul also highlighted his high school experience as a wrestler and two years of jujitsu training as reasons why he’d be confident in competing in an MMA promotion. 

The new PFL promotion is seen as a rival to Dana White’s UFC who has clashed with Jake Paul 

His move into MMA comes in the wake of his recent war of words with UFC owner Dana White. White claimed that Paul was on steroids, leading to the social media influencer releasing a rap song targeting the 53-year-old. 

The track was defended by Paul by declaring he was defending fighters’ rights against the abusive power structure of the UFC. 

In September, Paul continued the rivalry when announced his match with UFC legend Anderson Silva. Including clips from White in the announcement, where he could be seen promising that Jake Paul would never call out Silva.