CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Jake Paul packs a powerful punch.
A decade after the Westlake teenager -- with his older brother, Logan -- moved to Los Angeles and conquered the internet as one of the first YouTuber personalities, “The Problem Child” has reinvented himself as a legitimate boxer who packs a powerful right hook against his MMA competition.
Two weekends ago, Paul, 26, improved his record to 7-1 (4 KO) by unanimous decision over MMA fighter Nate Diaz.
A few days before the bout, Paul’s transformation from influencer to prizefighter was the focus of a recently released episode of Netflix’s critically acclaimed docuseries “Untold Vol. 3.”
We recently caught up with Paul (who was driving to Miami Airport to catch a flight home for his mother’s 60th birthday) to discuss his unlikely journey, earning respect and a future fight date at Cleveland Browns Stadium.
Hello, Jake, congrats on your recent unanimous decision win over Nate Diaz. How are you feeling and what’s next?
I’m feeling amazing. I’m just happy, relieved, eating whatever I want. Just getting to enjoy life. I’m super happy with my performance with my team. It was just an amazing, amazing event overall, so I’m just grateful and going to take some time off now and figure out what’s next, who’s next, when I’m going to fight. All of those things. I’m not in a rush. I’m just enjoying the moment.
Regarding your “Untold” documentary episode, how do you think it turned out?
It was cool. I think there’s so much more of the story to be told. It kind of touched on a lot of things that are already out there. A lot of people like it.
The material doesn’t shy away from exposing your troubled family dynamic. Was it hard to watch?
Not really, I’ve been dealing with it for 26 years, but it is an interesting dynamic. I guess everyone has family issues. Being in a public lifestyle, everything just automatically gets put on display -- especially my brother being a public figure as well. Of course, people who were filming the doc are obviously going to exploit things to get more drama and juiciness.
Considering so much of your life was spent as a self-promoting marketer, is that something you understand?
For sure, I get it. It’s the name of the game.
Coming into the sport as a true amateur, your boxing success is impressive. Can you remember the exact point over the last five years when you realized you could truly handle yourself inside of the ring?
The moment was after my first pro fight when I got a knockout in the first round. My coaches had been telling me, “Oh, you have a bunch of power. You’re really good. You’re really fast.” I didn’t know it for myself. Then after I stopped him in the first round, I was like, OK, they were being serious. That felt really good. That was really easy. That’s when I was like, I have this natural talent and ability for this.
It’s crazy to think just five years ago your time as a YouTube personality and influencer seemingly ran its course. Now you’re a boxer turning heads in the sport.
It doesn’t make any sense but I definitely was this person in 2018 who wasn’t necessarily fitting into the world that I was in. I felt lost and was trying to find my way. So it is very surreal but I guess boxing, honestly, just takes me back to my Cleveland roots. It’s like wrestling was my favorite thing. It gave me purpose, it gave me routine, it gave me discipline and kept me out of trouble. It felt good. I loved everything about it and really boxing is no different than wrestling -- making weight, the work ethic, all of that. So I finally went back to my roots of competition, really.
Despite being a guy who loves to be hated, the documentary highlights the cool reception given by boxers calling you a YouTuber fighter and celebrity influencer boxer. How difficult was it to hear them say you were ruining the sport?
I’m used to people doubting me and not seeing my true intentions, so it was kind of like another one of those stories. Really knew that I had to show the boxing world what I was going to do and how serious I was going to take it, but, obviously, they wanted to protect their sport, which is very understandable. My goal has always been to add to the sport of boxing and to make it a better place, so to me it was a fun challenge. You have to be challenged in life and you have to prove people wrong. That’s what makes it sweeter in the long run. I believe that’s exactly what I’ve done.
The biggest change of opinion comes from former Northeast Ohio resident Mike Tyson, who early on derided your entry into boxing. By the end of the documentary, he calls you his hero. How does that feel?
It doesn’t make any sense. It’s surreal, a dream come true. I could have never imagined this in a million years. He’s my hero, like he’s such an amazing person. I look up to him. He’s so wise. He’s been through so much and still comes out on top. To have him co-signing me like that, it’s just crazy, man. I often like to say that if I can accomplish all of these things in this sport in three and a half years, there’s no reason someone else shouldn’t be able to do the same. Truly, being from Cleveland, being from Westlake, kind of taking over the (expletive) world in many ways with my brother, that should inspire other kids out there to do the same, chase their dreams and not stop for anyone.
Considering you’ve been away for nearly a decade, do you still feel like a Clevelander at heart?
For sure -- the work ethic, the chip on my shoulder. Being from Cleveland, everything is earned, nothing is given. We embody that and that’s still a big part of who I am and what I like. Like how I act, the culture. People from Cleveland are super respectful, super nice but gritty at the same time and don’t take (expletive) from anyone. And Cleveland food is amazing. I always look forward to going back home. I’m a big foodie -- that’s still a part of who I am.
You said earlier you’re figuring out what comes next in your boxing career. How about a fight at Cleveland Browns Stadium?
Definitely this has to happen before I retire. Someone else just mentioned that to me, actually. I want to make that happen. We’ve been in talks with the stadium, actually, so it’s definitely a big possibility of that happening at some point.
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