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USA Today via Reuters

USA Today via Reuters

YouTube sensation Jake Paul is finally set to return to boxing to face off against former UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva. This will be an important event for Paul, as all his scheduled fights this year were canceled. He will be eager to get into the ring on October 29th and prove his boxing pedigree to the world.

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Many people have counted The Problem Child out because of Sliva’s dominance in the UFC as middleweight champion. However, UFC welterweight contender Nate Diaz thinks that the fight will be close than most people think.

Nate Diaz shares his thoughts on Paul vs Silva

The Stockton native gave his unfiltered opinion about the fight at the UFC presser for his upcoming bout against Khamzat Chimaev. Moreover, Paul even shared Diaz’s opinion on his Twitter account and claimed that this held more credibility than others. “Everybody has an opinion…at least this one has some credibility. #PaulSilva” Paul Wrote.

In the video, Diaz stated that the fight could go either way and also commented on how Silva was underappreciated during his time in the UFC. Moreover, he claimed that Paul also has a chance to win the fight due to him being a lot younger than Sliva. ” I see it going in a lot of different ways. I think, they consider him the GOAT in the UFC for a long time you know and there was no appreciation for that and I thought that was stupid and I think they would be stupid if they tryna count him out at all in this fight but I also see that Jake Paul could win or do well too. He is young, motivated, strong, inspired to box. So I think it makes for an interesting fight.” said Diaz.

Read More: ‘This Is a Fixed Fight’: Fans React to ‘Mockery’ of Boxing Jake Paul vs. Anderson Silva Gets Announced

Diaz strongly agrees with Paul on the issue of fighter pay and even refers to Silva being a victim of it. This issue has been gaining a lot of steam since many former UFC fighters have boxed against The Problem Child to get a better paycheck.

Why are so many former UFC fighters boxing Jake Paul?

Paul has previously fought two former UFC fighters in Ben Askren and Tyron Woodley. Three of his five fights were with these two welterweight fighters, which raised the question of why they fought him out of all people. The major reason for this is the amount of money they earned from fighting Paul. Woodley claimed that his match with Paul was the highest purse of his career, despite being a former UFC champion.

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USA Today via Reuters

Paul has long been calling out UFC president Dana White on this issue. Moreover, this has been magnified by the likes of Nate Diaz and Francis Ngannou. Both fighters stand with Paul on this issue, accusing the UFC of not paying them their due share. This is the reason many former fighters change their career paths to box influencers with large audiences.

What do you think about this matchup? Let us know in the comments.

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