Jake Paul was set to fight Tommy Fury and Hasim Rahman Jr. before both fights fell through over the course of the year. In a little over a month, MMA legend Anderson Silva will take up the challenge.
Silva, who made his mark in UFC, is 3-1 as a boxer with wins over Julio Cesar de Jesus, Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. and Tito Ortiz. Paul comes into the bout undefeated with four knockouts.
Most of Paul’s wins came against MMA fighters in Ben Askren and Tyron Woodley. He told Fox News Digital on Monday after his press conference for the Silva fight that he’s expecting a similar style from Silva on Oct. 29.
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"He has a shifty style. I think it just has to do with sparring partners emulating how he moves," Paul said of training for the Brazilian MMA star. "But I have gone up against MMA guys so I’m used to that funky style and punches coming out of nowhere and the overhands and all of that. I’ve been dealing with that this whole entire time pretty much in my boxing career so it won’t be anything new."
Paul said Silva was his idol growing up and getting the fight together was important to him.
"All of it man," Paul said of what intrigued him about the match. "The fact that he was my idol growing up and he was the first celebrity I ever met. Now, I get to share the ring with him. That first and foremost is super cool. And the fact that people didn’t think I was going to take this fight I think motivates me and creates a real challenge and I love to prove people wrong and that’s what I’m going to do October 29th."
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The 25-year-old told Fox News Digital he’s expecting a raucous atmosphere at the Gila River Arena in Glendale, Ariz. when the two take the ring next month.
"Crazy show. Electric energy in the stadium. Sold out arena. Iconic moments, fans chanting, throwing s—t, fighting in the crowd," Paul said. "It’s gonna be a movie. It’s gonna be a movie and I will knock him out. Respectfully."
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Asked what round Paul predicted he’d knock out Silva, the YouTube star replied, "less than five."