Jake Paul might be preparing for one of the biggest fights of his boxing career, but that hasn’t stopped old ghosts from knocking—and this time, it’s Nate Diaz back in the headlines, and back on Jake’s radar. Or… maybe not.
Over the last few years, the Paul brothers have turned the combat sports world upside down. Jake, the younger of the two, has built a surprisingly legitimate boxing resume by defeating former MMA stars, while Logan Paul has established himself as a full-time WWE superstar, holding the United States Championship and soaking up the spotlight at WrestleMania 40. Together, the siblings have become pop culture icons in combat sports—and magnets for controversy, callouts, and clickbait.
Earlier this year, the duo stirred online frenzy with a moody, cinematic teaser that hinted at a Paul vs. Paul boxing match. But what fans thought was a once-in-a-lifetime sibling collision turned out to be promotion for their reality show, Paul American. And while that fizzled, talk of the brothers entering MMA picked up again—especially after Logan Paul said he’d only fight Jake in the cage: “Not unless it’s MMA… He’d definitely win [in boxing] at this point… We would need an insane amount of money,” Logan explained on his IMPAULSIVE podcast.
That’s when Nate Diaz decided to stir the pot again. Responding to Logan’s statement, Diaz jumped on X with a classic Diaz-ism: “I whoop both these pu**ys.” Diaz, who lost to Jake Paul by unanimous decision in their August 2023 boxing match but rebounded with a win over Jorge Masvidal, hasn’t stepped into the UFC octagon since defeating Tony Ferguson at UFC 279. But clearly, his appetite for chaos hasn’t dulled.
And then came Jake Paul’s response—not on Twitter, not in a press release, but in the middle of a relaxed chat on The Ariel Helwani Show. When asked whether he was aware that Nate Diaz was still looking to fight him, Jake’s reaction was as deadpan as it was dismissive: “I didn’t even know about that one.” That one-liner was all it took. No dramatics. No trash talk. No war of words. Just a verbal shrug from the man gearing up to box Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. on June 28 in Anaheim.
While Diaz continues to tease a return, Paul seems focused elsewhere, particularly on Oleksandr Usyk, the reigning unified heavyweight boxing champion who recently expressed interest in fighting Jake Paul inside the cage.
A crossover fight brewing? Jake Paul and Oleksandr Usyk stoke the fire
In the world of combat sports’ constant evolution, few matchups sound as improbable, or as attention-grabbing, as Jake Paul vs. Oleksandr Usyk inside an MMA cage. And yet, according to Usyk’s longtime friend and team member Sergey Lapin, this may not be a far-off fantasy. In a recent interview with Norske Bettingsider, Lapin revealed that the reigning unified heavyweight boxing champion is “open to fighting Jake Paul in MMA” after his scheduled rematch with Daniel Dubois on July 19 at Wembley Stadium. “The Jake Paul fight is a great show,” Lapin added, describing the potential spectacle as something fans would rally behind.
For Usyk, 38, a two-division undisputed champion with a storied legacy and only two fights left in the tank, it would be a wild — and wildly unexpected—leap. But as Lapin explained, “Usyk said, ‘Why not? It’s cool—I love challenges.’” The Ukrainian great even recalled his background in wrestling and hand-to-hand combat from childhood, offering a rare glimpse into a potential foundation for his MMA debut. Meanwhile, he remains laser-focused on defeating Dubois once again, which would set the stage for a blockbuster finale to his legendary boxing career.
Jake Paul, for his part, isn’t brushing the idea off. Speaking to Ariel Helwani ahead of his June 28 boxing bout with Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., Paul confirmed the callout: “Yeah, Usyk wants me in MMA. These are all the things I am looking to do,” he said. But almost immediately, the conversation turned reflective. “The only thing I can’t do in my career is create time… I wake up every day pissed off at time… I’m still running like eight different companies, putting out content… I just need more time.” Far from empty bravado, Paul’s response highlighted the sheer volume of his commitments—and the reality that even the most ambitious names in sports can’t be in two rings at once.
Still, with a multi-fight contract signed with the Professional Fighters League (PFL), Jake Paul’s MMA debut is more of a when than an if. Whether his first SmartCage appearance involves Usyk or another headline-grabbing opponent remains to be seen. But with both camps showing mutual interest and fans already fantasizing about an Olympic gold medalist boxer testing himself against the sport’s most infamous disruptor, this fight may not just break the internet—it might redefine it.
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