Jake Paul’s loss to Tommy Fury WON’T affect MMA debut with YouTube star in training and in talks for opponent with PFL
JAKE PAUL’S loss to Tommy Fury will NOT affect his MMA debut with the Professional Fighters League.
The YouTuber-turned boxer suffered defeat for the first time in his career in February via split-decision in Saudi Arabia.
Just a month beforehand, Paul, 26, had announced his deal with the PFL, which will see him in both a promotional and fighter role.
He looks set to rematch Fury, 23, in the ring this year, but PFL CEO Peter Murray insisted it will not slow down his MMA debut.
Murray told SunSport: “Jake’s an incredible competitor and it was a great fight.
“But as it relates to MMA, Jake is training in the PFL SmartCage, he’s got his own setup and we’re excited about his focus on MMA.
“More to come on those details and his debut in MMA but full board, we’re really excited for his debut.”
The PFL is MMA’s only seasonal format, consisting of qualifying and knockout stages.
Points are earned per method of victory in the opening two bouts with the top four in each division progressing into the semi-finals.
From there, it is victory-or-go-home culminating in a winner-take-all finale fight where a title belt and $1m cash prize lays in wait.
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But Paul – who wrestled in high school – announced he will head up a new “super-fight” league, away from the regular season
The American has already began training for his MMA switch with talks for an opponent also ongoing for his PFL debut which is set for 2024.
Murray said: “From a planning standpoint of course, we’re having a number of conversations regarding, first and foremost, timing and opponent.
“The opponent being the number one topic of conversation but we build around that.”