Jake Paul is preparing to transition from the boxing ring to the cage, targeting mixed martial arts bouts against either Nate Diaz or Mike Perry following a major promotional merger announced this week.
The 29-year-old fighter and promoter revealed his intentions during an interview on Friday, confirming that he plans to compete under the newly formed MVP MMA banner created through the merger of his Most Valuable Promotions with the Professional Fighters League.
"Yeah, Nate Diaz. Mike Perry would be great," Paul told TMZ.com. "We love Mike Perry. The Nate conversation has been ongoing. It just never made complete sense. I think up until this moment, things just got a lot more serious with this announcement. So, I want the Nate Diaz MMA fight very, very bad."
A matchup with Diaz would represent a significant shift in competitive dynamics. While Paul defeated Diaz by unanimous decision in a boxing match in August 2023, an MMA contest would place Paul in unfamiliar territory against an opponent who has competed professionally in mixed martial arts since 2004.
The rivalry with Perry also carries substantial history. Perry served as a sparring partner for Paul in early 2021, and after footage from those sessions became public, the two fighters engaged in a war of words. Paul ultimately defeated Perry in a boxing match in 2024, but an MMA bout would present different challenges.
Beyond his fighting ambitions, Paul made clear that MVP MMA intends to directly challenge the Ultimate Fighting Championship for market dominance. When asked whether the goal was to compete with the UFC, Paul responded emphatically.
"One thousand percent, it's war," Paul told TMZ.com. "I look at this like Coke versus Pepsi and there's already so many comparisons made with us on a day-to-day basis, but we got more viewership than they did on their White House card where Donald Trump is promoting it. I love Donnie and we're going to make MMA great again."
Paul emphasized that his organization would not adopt a subordinate position in the competitive landscape of mixed martial arts promotion.
"We can compete. We are competing and we're out competing. So, it'll be exciting and interesting," Paul told TMZ.com.
The merger positions Paul not only as a fighter but as a major promotional force in the sport. Fights will operate under the MVP MMA banner, combining the resources and fighter rosters of both organizations.
While Paul has achieved success in boxing, mixed martial arts requires proficiency in wrestling, grappling, and submissions in addition to striking. Both Diaz and Perry possess extensive experience in these disciplines, potentially creating compelling stylistic matchups that would test Paul's ability to adapt to the full spectrum of combat sports.
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Ava Hart
Ava Hart is a pop culture junkie and loves to share what's happening in Hollywood and what trends are taking the world by storm.
