Jake Paul received praise from UFC legend Urijah Faber.
The YouTuber turned boxer is often ridiculed for his lack of skills after building a 9-1 record beating aging UFC stars and unknown boxers.
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Paul is now set to take on one of the sport’s greatest legends, Mike Tyson, in a fight that has some worried because there will be a 31-year age gap when they meet at AT&T Stadium in Texas on the 20th. July.
However, he found an unlikely ally in Faber, who earned a spot in the UFC Hall of Fame with 35 MMA victories and fights with Jose Aldo, Dominick Cruz and Renan Barao.
“The California Kid” compared Paul to Tommy Morrison – a heavyweight known for his ferocious punching power, who starred alongside Sylvester Stallone as Tommy Gunn in Rocky V.
“I think Jake has some real God-given skills,” Faber told talkSPORT MMA.
“Obviously he works hard but it’s hard to knock people out.
“This knockout powerhouse, in my opinion, he’s not at that level yet but (he’s like) Tommy ‘Gunn’ Morrison. He looks dignified, he’s about the same height and he has obviously a certain natural power.
Faber is a personal friend of Tyson and won’t count him out against the 27-year-old, but he is concerned about his ability to shoot, as he knows from personal experience that it becomes more difficult with age.
The 44-year-old hasn’t fought since suffering his first real knockout loss to former bantamweight champion Petr Yan at UFC 245 in December 2019.
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Faber added: “I know Tyson, he’s a friend of mine.
“When I was hanging out with him, he was chain smoking weed and taking care of business.
“Everyone reacts differently to this sort of thing, but from what I see he seems to be in the best shape I’ve seen him in a very long time and he’s taking it very seriously. I don’t think that power disappears.
“It just depends on whether Tyson is going to get hit or not. I know that as we get older, it’s harder to take a punch.
“I’m interested, that’s all that really matters.” I think it’s dangerous on both sides.
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