The world has been buzzing this week on the news that Showtime Boxing has booked Jake Paul (3-0) against former UFC champion Tyron Woodley (19-7-1). This will be the first time in his short boxing career that Jake Paul is taking on someone who can do damage.
Paul recently signed an exclusive deal with Showtime Boxing and they are immediately upping his competition. Yesterday, I said that Jake Paul deserves credit and a little respect for at least taking on someone who has a lot of power like Woodley.
Yes, he’s still not taking on someone legit in boxing. However, it would’ve been easy for Paul to take on someone with virtually no power or striking experience in his next boxing matchup. Instead, he’s taking on a former UFC champion with serious knockout power.
UFC President Dana White was asked about the boxing matchup during his appearance on Mike Swick’s Podcast this week. White made a prediction for the matchup, but he did hedge a little on that prediction.
Who will win the boxing match?
When asked to give a prediction, Dana White said, “I’d have to go with Woodley by knockout. Listen man, Woodley should knock him out. But, again, the Tyron Woodley you talk about… Isn’t the same f**kin’ guy he was four years ago.”
White also pointed out the fact that Woodley will head into this boxing matchup having lost four straight. Yes, Woodley isn’t the same guy that he was just a few years ago and he is getting up there in age.
Dana White brought up a lot of valid points about this boxing matchup. In reality, Tyron Woodley should win this, but he’s not even the betting favorite. Those lines likely play off Woodley’s losing streak and his age.
I will say that the Tyron Woodley we saw at UFC 260 was the best version of Woodley we’ve seen in a while. He was aggressive and he hurt Vicente Luque in the first round. If Woodley is calculated and aggressive, he could put Jake Paul out cold in their boxing matchup.
You can view White’s full appearance below: