Daria Patarek
Jake Paul’s career is one littered with controversies and scandals. Daria Patarek discusses his career thus far, including his involvement in the boxing world.
Initially, Jake Paul rose to internet notoriety through Vine. He became one of the platform’s biggest influencers, accumulating over 5 million followers on the app before its closure. Shortly after Vine closed down, Jake Paul began his mainstream career by playing Dirk Mann on Disney Channel’s Bizaardvark. Yet his acting career was cut short as his YouTube popularity grew, his behaviour became more problematic, and he became the Jake Paul we know now.
despite being widely disliked, Jake Paul has a solid fanbase and knows how to sell
His YouTube popularity meant that he could participate in other industries like music, with his infamous single ‘It’s Everyday Bro’. Despite wide criticism, the song made the Billboard 100 and went platinum. This illustrates that despite being widely disliked, Jake Paul has a solid fanbase and knows how to sell. His YouTube popularity and his ‘villain’ persona meant that he was the perfect candidate for the (YouTube) boxing world.
Jake Paul’s boxing career began amidst the YouTube boxing phase, as he boxed Deji Olatunji in a boxing event that his older brother, Logan Paul, headlined. Paul took out Olatunji on a TKO. After the win, Paul fought another fellow YouTuber, AnEsonGib. After only two minutes, the fight resulted in Paul TKO’ing Gib. The most rampant criticism that Paul received was that he was not fighting ‘real’ boxers, instead opting to fight fellow YouTubers, for easy money and status.
Throughout his boxing career, Paul has adopted a McGregor-esque villain persona. But this is not surprising. This persona is merely an extension of his YouTube persona, which began with multiple scandals, including the mistreatment of Team 10 members, Paul’s disorderly behaviour, and drama with celebrities such as Zayn (a feud he recently reignited). Paul himself adopted the nickname ‘Problem Child’ after he became notorious for his trash talking and scandals.
Paul started progressing outside of the YouTube boxing world by fighting NBA star Nate Robinson. The fight became known by Paul’s right hook that won him the fight and caused Nate Robinson to become a meme. Yet Paul continued receiving criticism for not fighting a ‘real boxer’. His next opponent was Ben Askren, an American former martial artist and amateur wrestler. Paul knocked him out in under two minutes. Paul was further questioned about the legitimacy of the fight after footage of Askren laughing after the fight surfaced on the internet.
tensions between Paul and Tommy Fury began after multiple online callouts
In a search for another opponent, Jake Paul fought Tyron Woodley, another mixed martial artist. Recently, there have been claims put forward that Woodley wasn’t contractually allowed to knock out Paul, questioning not only the legitimacy of Paul’s fight with Woodley but also his previous opponents.
Concerning his most recent fight announcement, tensions between Paul and Tommy Fury began after multiple online callouts. This included Paul responding to Tommy Fury’s call-out video with Tyson Fury, questioning Fury’s opponents who combined have 15 wins and 250 losses. Jake Paul responded with ‘you have some ladders to climb to get onto my level’, and then released an alleged DM from Fury’s girlfriend, Molly Mae.
The Paul vs Fury fight is officially scheduled for the 18th of December, and stakes are high for both. Paul (4-0, 3 KOs) will face Fury (7-0, 4 KOs), and both have reputations and pride to maintain. Considering Paul’s boxing history, is his participation in the boxing world a strategic move to make a fast profit, or is he actually trying to make a name for himself in the boxing?
It is undeniable that boxing has made Paul a lot of money. Despite being a ‘villain’ on social media, it is clear that Paul has a strong fan base that supports his boxing exploits. And even if you’re not a fan, the social media talk that accumulates after his numerous controversies gives him exactly what he wants- money and people talking about him.
his work ethic and villainous persona are arguably building a legacy for him as a legitimate fighter
Paul earned around $700,000 for his fight with Deji- and this figure has not declined in his recent fights. His fight against Gib earned him around $1 million, but the biggest surprise was the profit after his fight with Nate Robinson- which he revealed to be a celestial $10 million. With figures like that, why would Paul end his boxing career when he has the potential to continue earning even more?
Yet Paul’s boxing ability cannot be denied. While being far from a pro-boxer, Paul’s work ethic and entertainment ability set the foundation for a successful career in boxing. If he succeeds in his fight with Tommy Fury, an actual professional boxer, this will likely facilitate his legacy as the most successful YouTuber boxer.
So while Paul’s motives right now are probably financial, his work ethic and villainous persona are arguably building a legacy for him as a legitimate fighter.
Daria Patarek
Featured image courtesy of Arisa Chattasa via Unsplash. Image licence found here. No changes were made to this image.
In-article video courtesy of MMA Bouts via @youtube.com. No changes were made to this video.
In-article image courtesy of Molly-Mae Hague via @instagram.com. No changes were made to this image.
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