Boxing News: Ex-UFC Champ Names Huge Obstacle for Jake Paul vs. Alex Pereira Fight

Paul called out the UFC Light Heavyweight Champion following his boxing win last weekend.

Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports

One former UFC champion has identified a major roadblock that may keep a boxing match between Jake Paul and Alex Pereira from ever coming together.

Boxing News: Jake Paul Called Out by Ex-UFC Champ to "Fight Someone Your Own Size"

Kamaru Usman Weighs-In On Paul vs. Pereira

Paul commanded the attention of much of the combat sports world last weekend when he met UFC veteran and BKFC star Mike Perry in Tampa, FL after a planned matchup with boxing legend Mike Tyson was postponed to November due to Tyson’s ulcer flare up.

The 27-year-old ultimately stopped the noticeably-smaller Perry in the sixth round to collect his tenth professional boxing win before calling for a matchup with UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Pereira, but former welterweight titleholder Kamaru Usman doesn’t expect UFC CEO Dana White to sign off on that idea.

Jake Paul defeated Mike Perry in a boxing match last Saturday. / (Esther Lin/Most Valuable Promotions)

"It won’t happen,” Usman explained on Pound 4 Pound with Henry Cejudo. “ I just don’t think it’s – Jake Paul, in the name of promoting nowadays, has done a lot of things and said a lot of things about Dana White that I feel are Colby Covington-esque. In that case, you put yourself off to where I don’t think Mr. Dana White ever wants to do business with you.”

"I Don't Think It's An Unwinnable Fight"

Perry was the fifth UFC veteran that Paul has bested in the boxing ring, and although Usman believes the promotion’s CEO in White won’t allow the Pereira fight to happen he does think “Problem Child” would have a better chance at winning than some fans may expect.

Jun 29, 2024; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Alex Pereira (red gloves) fights Jiri Prochazka (blue gloves) during UFC 303 at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports / Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

“I never say never, that’s a motto that I live by. Never say never. But I think there’s a strong chance that Dana White will choose not to do business with them…I do believe Alex Pereira can win that fight…I do [think Pereira can knock him out] but I don’t think it’s an unwinnable fight for Jake Paul. I don’t think so.”

Arguably the biggest star in the UFC at the moment, Pereira is coming off his second successful light heavyweight title defense after he stopped Jiří Procházka in a short-notice rematch at UFC 303 that was quickly put together as a replacement for Conor McGregor’s planned return fight against Michael Chandler.

McGregor’s boxing match with Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2017 is the only time White has let one of the UFC’s active fighters take on that sort of crossover matchup, and while the Paul vs. Pereira fight does seem highly unlikely the UFC CEO will almost certainly be watching when his friend “Iron Mike” squares off with “Problem Child” on November 15 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX.

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