Rich Paul took aim at Kid Cudi’s Cleveland heritage during a recent appearance on Jake Paul’s podcast. “Do I think how Cudi treats Cleveland is weird? No, because I don’t think Cleveland ever embraced Cudi, unfortunately. Because you can’t expect somebody to treat a situation any different to how they were treated,” Paul said.
Despite Paul’s comments, Cudi has also repped his home city. His debut mixtape in 2008 featured the track “Cleveland is the Reason”. Furthermore, the release featured several other references to the Ohio hub. He also launched a Cleveland-based music festival, Man Moon’s Landing, last year. “It was dope. I was exposed to a lot of different things. It was like a suburb and the hood was a couple blocks away. There was a bar at the end of my street my dad used to take me to. He would talk to his buddies and have a beer and I would sit there and eat jellybeans. I was like 5 or 6. I came to New York solely to do music. The response was never what I wanted [in Cleveland] because the Cleveland audience only wanted to hear that street sh-t,” Cudi said in 2008.
Elsewhere in the podcast episode, Paul also took shots at Cudi. Paul’s grievance surrounded Cudi’s appearance fees. Paul claimed that he had reached out to Cudi about performing at his 2021 fight against Tyron Woodley. However, Cudi’s fee was just too much for Paul to afford. “I tried to get him to perform at the Tyron Woodley fight just before I came out and he asked for like, an astronomical fee that was like, ‘F-ck you.’ I get it, but it’s like, this was like some sh-t to tap in back with the city. Like, first event back from Covid,” Paul explained.
Furthermore, Paul argued that he gave discounts on his appearance fees when the City of Cleveland was involved. With Cudi out, Paul instead made his ring entrance to recordings of Machine Gun Kelly‘s “Till I Die” and Jeezy‘s “Put On”. Paul would go on to beat the retired MMA fighter via split decision. Cudi has not yet responded to the allegations.
Jake Paul took aim at fellow Ohio native Kid Cudi for his “astronomical” appearance fees. Paul claimed that he had reached out to Cudi about performing at his 2021 fight against Tyron Woodley. However, Cudi’s fee was just too much for Paul to afford. “I tried to get him to perform at the Tyron Woodley fight just before I came out and he asked for like, an astronomical fee that was like, ‘F-ck you.’ I get it, but it’s like, this was like some sh-t to tap in back with the city. Like, first event back from Covid,” Paul explained.
Furthermore, Paul argued that he gave discounts on his appearance fees when the City of Cleveland was involved. With Cudi out, Paul instead made his ring entrance to recordings of Machine Gun Kelly’s “Till I Die” and Jeezy’s “Put On”. Paul would go on to beat the retired MMA fighter via split decision. Cudi has not yet responded to the allegations.
Elsewhere, Paul’s next fight is rapidly approaching. Paul will fight Houston-based professional boxer Andre August on December 15 in Orlando. August is 35 years old and has a 10-1-1 career record. That makes him the most experienced fighter Paul has faced in his career so far. Furthermore, it marks a shift in Paul’s approach to boxing. It’s hard to take the decision as anything other than Paul addressing the primary criticism against him – that he takes name value over boxing reputation when it comes to opponents.
“I’m a professional boxer and I want to be world champion, so I need to pursue the path towards greatness against people who have been boxing their whole life. So far, my entire boxing career has been on pay-per-view, but now it’s about more than business. Now I want to build my experience in the ring against seasoned fighters. I’m coming to prove my greatness on Friday, December 15th live on DAZN for the world to see,” Paul said in a statement.
Jake Paul rose to fame on the once-popular video-sharing platform Vine. He was then cast as Dirk Mann on the Disney Channel series Bizaardvark for two seasons. Paul has become the subject of controversies throughout his career due to his erratic behavior. He has, in the past, been charged with criminal trespass and unlawful assembly.
One of the recently anticipated Jake Paul fights is his upcoming match with UFC alum Nate Diaz. The bout has been officially announced and is scheduled for August 5, 2023. Tension between the two athletes has been simmering for a while now. Several reports claim that Diaz slapped a member of Paul’s crew during the Paul vs. Silva fight.
Meanwhile, Paul looks to bounce back after suffering his first loss to Tommy Fury via a split decision in February. On the other hand, Diaz is set for his first professional boxing match after refusing to re-sign with the UFC. Paul and Diaz will wear 10-ounce gloves in the 185-pound eight-round fight. This will be Paul’s eighth fight since he began professional boxing. Here is a rundown of Jake’s professional boxing career as we countdown the days until the highly anticipated faceoff.
8. Jake Paul Vs. Tommy Fury (2023)
The Jake Paul fight against Tommy Fury was billed as “The Truth.” It took place in February 2023 in the Diriyah Arena, Diriyah, Saudi Arabia. Fury won the bout by a split decision. The fight sold 800,000 pay-per-view buys. Fury landed a higher percentage of punches, whilst Paul scored a knockdown, which stunned and staggered Fury to his knee. Two judges scored the bout 76-73 for Fury, while a third favored Paul by 75-74. Paul was initially scheduled to fight Tommy on in December 2021. However, Fury was not available for the bout due to injury concerns.
7. Jake Paul Vs. Anderson Silva (2022)
A then undefeated Paul would face mixed martial artist, boxer, and former UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva. The match was slated for October 29, 2022. The Jake Paul vs. Anderson Silva fight took place at the Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Arizona. Paul won the fight via a unanimous decision. The bout was estimated to have sold 200,000 to 300,000 pay-per-view buys and lasted the eight designated rounds. Jake Paul’s win moved him to a record of six wins with no defeats.
6. Jake Paul Vs. Tyron Woodley II (2021)
Jake Paul vs. Tyron Woodley II was billed as “Leave No Doubt.” The fight was a rematch of the two athletes’ previous fight in 2021. Paul vs. Woodley II took place on December 18, 2021, at the Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida. Two hundred thousand pay-per-views were bought during the fight. Tommy Fury pulled out of a Jake Paul fight in December 2021 due to a bacterial chest infection and a broken rib. Tyron Woodley then replaced him to face Paul in the rematch. The bout was contested over eight rounds at a limit of 192 pounds under the cruiserweight division. Paul won the rematch by knockout two minutes and twelve seconds into the sixth round.
5. Jake Paul Vs. Tyron Woodley (2021)
Jake Paul took on mixed martial artist Tyron Woodley in a professional fight on August 29, 2021. The event occurred at the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Paul’s hometown of Cleveland, Ohio. The fight sold 500,000 pay-per-view buys. On May 20, 2021, it was announced that the YouTuber-turned-professional boxer signed a promotional deal with Showtime. The agreement would see his next bout aired on the network. The fight against Tyron Woodley was announced as the first to be aired on the network.
Before the bout, Paul had compiled a record 3 – 0 as a professional boxer. He was also coming off a first-round technical knockout victory against former mixed martial artist Ben Askren. Woodley was making his debut as a professional boxer against Paul. Ohio State Athletic Commission reported that Paul and Woodley earned an official purse of $2,000,000.
4. Jake Paul Vs. Ben Askren (2021)
Jake Paul vs. Ben Askren took place at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia. Jake Paul won the fight via a technical knockout (TKO) in one minute and 59 seconds of the first round. The fight sold 500,000 pay-per-view buys. The bout was set at $49.99 and was initially thought to have sold an estimated 1.5 million pay-per-view buys.
However, professional fight executives like Dana White cast doubt on the reports. Jake Paul, in a message to Conor McGregor, later revealed that the fight actually sold 500,000 pay-per-view buys. Georgia Athletic and Entertainment Commission reported that Paul earned an official purse of $690,000 and Askren $500,000. These figures didn’t include any additional bonuses or pay-per-view profits.
3. Jake Paul Vs. Nate Robinson (2020)
Jake Paul proved experience matters in his return to pro boxing against former professional basketballer Nate Robinson. The match went down at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, on November 28, 2022. Paul won the fight via a knockout in one minute 24 seconds of the second round out of the designated six. Although Nate held an advantage of four inches in reach, Paul’s boxing training made him the better fighter. Paul had engaged in professional boxing training in the months leading up to this fight.
2. Paul Vs. AnEsonGib (2020)
Jake Paul knocked out AnEsonGib within the first round when he made his pro-boxing debut in 2020. The American floored his fellow YouTuber three times in the opener, causing the referee to stop the apparent mismatch. Few predicted just how one-sided the bout would turn out to be. AnEsonGib had previously won his two white-collar contests. Paul, however, easily blew him away in three minutes. The fight took place at The Meridian Island Gardens in Miami, Florida.
1. Jake Paul Vs. Deji Olatunji, Armature Fight (2018)
This was an armature fight between the two YouTubers on August 25, 2018, at the Manchester Arena in England. The match was both athletes’ boxing debuts. Paul took the win with a fifth-round stoppage. Jake Paul famously called out R&B superstar Chris Brown after his win. Reports were circulating that Chris and rapper Soulja Boy were considering a celebrity boxing match.
