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Marc Raimondi
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Michael Rothstein
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Michael Rothstein
ESPN Staff Writer
- Michael Rothstein is a reporter for NFL Nation at ESPN. Rothstein covers the Atlanta Falcons. You can follow him via Twitter @MikeRothstein.
DALLAS — In Jake Paul‘s battle against MMA fighters, he remains undefeated.
The YouTuber-turned-prizefighter defeated Nate Diaz via unanimous decision (97-92, 98-91, 98-91) Saturday night at a sold-out American Airlines Center. Paul hurt Diaz in the first round and it seemed like he would cruise or finish the fight early. But Diaz hung in and made it a dogfight throughout.
“He’s a warrior,” Paul said in his postfight interview. “I had him in the first round. He kept on coming. No one has taken that much damage. All credit to my team and my conditioning.”
Paul challenged Diaz to an MMA fight afterward. Diaz seemed receptive to it. Paul and PFL have a standing $10 million offer for Diaz to do it. Diaz said it would have to be co-promoted by Real Fight Inc.
“I’ll fight anybody,” Diaz said. “I don’t give a f—.”
Paul dropped Diaz in the fifth round, but Diaz was able to recover. Diaz joked about getting Paul in a guillotine choke in the 10th and final round.
Paul, 26, came in with boxing wins over former UFC champions Anderson Silva and Tyron Woodley (two, including one by knockout), plus another knockout over former MMA champion Ben Askren. He has been a pro boxer since 2020. Diaz, 38, was making his professional boxing debut. The bout was contested at 185 pounds, the heaviest weight Diaz has fought at in his long career.
Diaz spent 17 years in the UFC and was one of the promotion’s biggest stars. He choked out Conor McGregor, handing McGregor his first UFC loss, in 2016. Diaz left the UFC as a free agent following a win over Tony Ferguson last September. He started his own promotion, Real Fight Inc., and vowed to look for the biggest and most interesting fights — on his terms.